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THE MAJESTIC 

HOME TRAINING COURSES 

OF 

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MERIDEN, CONN. 








UJUUZ 


Universal Magnetism 


A PRIVATE TRAINING COURSE 
IN THE 

MAGNETIC 

CONTROL OF OTHERS 


BY THE MOST POWERFUL 
OF ALL KNOWN METHODS 


TAUGHT BY 

EDMUND SHAFTESBURY 



In Two Volumea 
VOLUME I 


ISSUED BY THE 

RALSTON UNIVERSITY PRESS 
MERIDEN, CONN. 

1924 








Copyright, 1924 

BY 

Ralston Company 


All Bights Reserved 



Manufactured in 77. S. A . 

©Cl A808676 

NOV-6'24 

. h 





:*• 

t 


DEDICATION 


To the thousands of men and women whose experiences 
have confirmed the teachings in private life of the prin¬ 
ciples and laws that are now fully presented for the first 
time in any published work, and whose appreciation has 
grown as the years have multiplied, this new form of 
magnetic control is respectfully dedicated by their fellow 
student and friend, the Author: 

Edmund Shaftesbury. 

1924 




INTRODUCTION 


■-*-- 

In this year, 1924, new knowledge of the wonderful secret 
forces of life is being given to the world in these many lessons, 
and new results in the use of the greatest power in the uni¬ 
verse are being assured to our students. Those who have 
followed our past teachings will be pleased to note the vast 
advance which has been made recently in this system of train¬ 
ing. This progress is solid, for it is built on countless experi¬ 
ments and tests that have never known failure. < . 

Magnetism is the most valuable of all studies. In itself it is 
the power to influence or control mind and matter. Such 
-control exists everywhere; as between matter and matter we 
see it in the law of gravity, the law of cohesion, the holding of 
the mariner’s needle to the north, and the drawing of one 
substance to another; as between mind and matter, it controls 
all the physical functions of the body, including health and 
action; as between mind and mind, we know there is a channel 
of communication through which influences are sent by powers 
not answerable to the ordinary senses. Every human being 
possesses some control over others, or some means of control¬ 
ling others, although they may be unknown and unused. . 

Magnetism and hypnotism are opposite ideas and opposite 
terms; yet most persons believe that the person who is magne¬ 
tized is hypnotized. This is a serious mistake. To magnetize 
is to make more awake, to attract, charm, enliven and vitalize; 
to hypnotize is to make dull, sleepy, repugnant, weak, cata¬ 
leptic and dead as far as the natural functions are concerned. 
One is always grand and noble; the other is always mean and 
contemptible. A person who is magnetized is made better for 
it; one who is mesmerized is made worse for it. 

The young woman who recently hypnotized herself to get 
rid of certain misfortunes that haunted her, went crazy; the 
doctors said that, had she developed her magnetism, she would 
have expelled the first condition and avoided the last. All 
persons may hypnotize themselves; all persons may magnetize 
themselves. To hypnotize, it is necessary that all magnetism 
shall be driven out of the body; to magnetize, renders it impos¬ 
sible to hypnotize. This distinction must be well understood, 
and should be kept constantly in mind during the study of 



6 


INTRODUCTION 


this volume. You cannot be thin and fat at the same time. 
You may pass from one condition to the other, but not readily. 

A magnetic person may control the hypnotic only so long 
as the latter lacks magnetism. The former makes an effort to 
drive out what little vitality of this kind the latter may 
possess; but the sure way of thwarting all such efforts is by 
the study, culture and accumulation of magnetism. By such 
means, the hypnotic rescues himself from the contact of 
another. Fright, fear, superstition, mental weakness, hysteria 
and insanity are all overcome and forever expelled by the 
acquisition of magnetism. 

On the other hand, let a person study and practice to become 
an hypnotic, and he will find his mind gradually giving way, 
illusions will come across it, fancies will disturb his sleeping 
and waking hours, figures of outlined forms will flit in his 
path, sounds will disturb him, and little surprises will startle 
him. As one woman said, who thought she would like to be¬ 
come a clairvoyant through the process of hypnotism, “Then 
began my wretchedness.” The cure of such a condition is 
through magnetism. The cure of darkness is light. 

Despite the dangers of hypnotism, we present the most com¬ 
plete analysis and discussion of it that has ever been published; 
and, if the personal assurances of ‘those who have paid hun¬ 
dreds of dollars to other instructors can be believed, the les¬ 
sons given in this volume are better, more scientific, more 
thorough, and more effective than any that can be obtained 
from teachers of the highest rank. We present herein fully 
ten times the scope and space of any department of previous 
editions that has been devoted to this one study. 

The object is two-fold. First, there should be nothing lack¬ 
ing in a work of this kind and purport. Second, the reason, 
theory and process of mesmerizing should be understood by all 
classes, especially by those who are liable to be easily influ¬ 
enced or led astray. There are grades of mesmeric control, 
from the well known “lapse” of thought to the cataleptic 
sleep. Magnetism benefits the user and the person influenced. 
Mesmerism degrades the latter, and is chiefly a plaything for 
the former. Whether you decide to acquire the art of hyp¬ 
notizing or not, you should never be hypnotized. 


REALM ONE 


T ELL me what is that far away — 

Where hangs the mist-cloud sullen and gray? 
Rising and rolling through clouds of spray, 

Tell me, what is it, pray? 


Universal Magnetism 

THE POWER THAT BINDS 

MATTER UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF MATTER, 
MATTER TO MIND, MIND TO MIND, 

AND SOUL TO SOUL. 

G OLD roses, climbing, clasp a casement round, 

Down on the gray stone still their sweet heads 
laying; 

Below there stands a pale nymph, ivy-crowned, 

A strange air playing: — 

‘Fain would I wander in the sun-stained gloom 

With thee; might this charmed hour forsake us 
never; 

Might but my steps, retraced, this quiet room 
Re-enter ever f 

Still sob the viol-strings their slow refrain; 

Her eyes uplifted, through a tear-film glisten, — 

‘In years far hence I’ll come to thee again, 

And thou wilt listen. 

Ah, then my spells shall compass thee around, 

With wild airs whispering, and fair lost faces; 

And thou shalt hearken to my viol’s sound 
In shady places.’ ” 


(7) 


LIFE 


IFE! I know not what thou art, 

But know that thou and I must part; 

And when or how or where we met, 

I own to me’s a secret yet. 

To the vast ocean of empyreal flame, 

From whence thy essence came, 

Dost thou thy flight pursue, when freed 
From matter’s base encumbering weed? 

Or dost thou, hid from sight, 

Wait like some spell-bound knight, 

Through blank oblivion’s years the appointed hour, 
To break thy trance and reassume thy power? 

Yet canst thou without thought or feeling be? 

O say what art thou, when no more thou’rt thee? 
Life! We’ve been long together, 

Through pleasant and through cloudy weather; 

’Tis hard to part when friends are dear; 

Perhaps ’twill cost a sigh, a tear; 

Then steal away, give little warning, 

Choose thine own time; 

Say not good-night, but in some brighter clime 
Bid me good-morning.” 


(8) 



“""THE woodland silence one time stirred, 

* By the soft pathos of some passing bird, 

Is not the same it was before. 

The spot where once, unseen, a flower 
Has held its fragile chalice to the shower, 
Is different forevermore. 

Unheard, unseen, 

A spell has been! ” 



NDER THE CLOUDS a lad lies dreaming. Be¬ 
neath the branches of a wide-spreading apple 
tree, on the browned and worn sod, he rests in 
open sleep, his mind locked in stndy, while over¬ 
head he views the idle vapors as they float dream¬ 
ily by. The verdure above bends down to give shade and 
cooling protection to the verdure beneath, so that he 
catches glimpses of the sky only through spaces made by 
the yielding boughs. 

He wonders at many things. The trees, the shrubs, the 
plants, the flowers all nod obeisance to the sun and its 

9 















10 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


flooding light. They lift themselves up continually. The 
rock clings close to the ground. The volume of air out¬ 
spreads itself around the globe, yet has so much weight 
that to lift one inch of it from the earth even so slightly, 
would require pounds of force. On the bosom of this air, 
the clouds glide like boats in the heart of the sea. They 
do not attain the top, nor reach the bottom, until they 
condense and become heavier than their buoyant master. 
At times they reach dizzy heights; then again they crawl 
along the crests of hills; or, in sheer weariness, they ap¬ 
proach the ground. Yet in all their wanderings they are 
chained to this planet by a single law. 

The apple tree is strong and mighty. Its roots are 
giants. They have gone down many feet in search of 
perpetual moisture. They have spread in all directions, 
seeking food from the rich stores in the soil. Their 
commerce is borne on the bosom of climbing streams, 
even tending to the top, outward and upward to the light 
of day as it is poured forth from the sun. This central 
fire and force seeks all life; and, to answer its call, matter 
itself is carried up out of the solid earth along with the 
living tendencies that subdue it. Thus inert material 
rises from its bed of clay and is kissed by the god that 
molds it into being. 

Hanging aloft on the freely swinging branches of the 
apple-tree, the fruit is glowing in newly painted colors, 
bright from the freshest touch of nature. Drop by drop, 
particle by particle, the juices and the substance have 
been drawn out of the ground, from depths profound, 
up through the trunk and branches to the stem on which 
the golden apple hangs. The dreamer beneath watches 
it swaying in the breeze; sees it hesitate for a moment; 
and notes its quick flight to the earth. It came, not by 
some force that hurled it down, but by an attraction that 
drew it. 

What that influence was, that could return matter to 


REALM ONE 


11 


the material fund from which another power had taken it, 
seemed too subtle a problem for human intelligence to 
solve; and, though centuries have elapsed since the 
dreamer first caught the spirit of its meaning, it still 
remains unsolved. To ascribe a misunderstood process 
to supernatural control is always the height of error. No 
thinking person who respects his own intellect will fall 
back upon the occult excuse for an explanation of what 
he cannot comprehend. If this is to be the goal of 
investigation, the child will never become a man. 
‘ ‘ Superstitions would soon die out if so many old women 
wouldn’t act as nurses to keep them alive.” 

The masses that court superstition pass by the greatest 
mystery of the universe. Why does an object fall to the 
ground ? What holds the planets fast within the influence 
of the sun? If you answer one, you cannot answer both. 
It will not do to say it is the attraction of gravity; for 
the heavier a thing is the less it falls. If the object were 
as great as the earth, the earth would rise up to meet 
the object, and to that extent lessen its fall. The giant 
orbs that sail in majesty through the still skies of night, 
cannot get away if they would. A rope of influence binds 
each to its place, beyond which there is no wandering. 
To our humble minds it would seem as though some 
actual chain must be employed, else why could not the 
planet fly away at will t 

Holding myriad tons of matter in easy sway, checking 
their advance by consummate skill, and never releasing 
its momentary interest over little things, some influence 
as powerful as the universe itself pervades all existence 
from the least to the greatest, and there is no analysis of 
science that can solve the mystery; so it goes unchal¬ 
lenged. Turn whichever way you will, this influence is 
always at hand. It is found in the microscopic sea, in 
the teeming ocean of visible life, and in the vast ether 
of the sky. 


12 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


Magnetism is universal. 

This is the First Principle. Much of the mystery of 
existence may be accounted for when we come to recog¬ 
nize the fact that the forces of nature obey the great law 
of magnetism; although man is powerless to explain the 
reason or the origin of this law. It is not necessary to 
shut ourselves up in a narrow world of belief, and grope 
outward in the dark, wondering what this mystery is. 
God works through recognized forces, fixed in their laws 
and natural in their results. Superstition is merely the 
inability to account for causes. 

Life is more easily solved if we can come to understand 
that there is a force called magnetism which holds all 
existence together and impels all growth and all change. 
A body flying through space would go on in a straight 
line until it collided with another, and it would never 
cease going if no other were in its way, were it not for 
some magnetic influence that called it back. This earth 
is as free as any such object; it starts every year to go 
off into space and gets a few millions of miles farther 
away from the sun in June than in December; but if it 
were not drawn back, it would soon become an iceberg 
wandering in a void and bearing on its bosom nearly two 
billions of entombed humanity who had frozen to death. 

It is wise and merciful that this earth is held to her 
course, and is brought back when she begins to wander 
off. What holds her in place? A cable over ninety mil¬ 
lions of miles in length might fasten her securely to the 
sun; and, swinging at its end, she might whirl through 
space in joyous security; but the sun has other children 
to control; the many cables might become tangled; the 
weight might be intolerable; the end in the planet might 


REALM ONE 


13 


be difficult to fasten against man’s attempt to cut it 
loose, and the heat of the sun would surely melt the other 
end; so a long distance magnetism is employed to hold 
the earth in place. 

What this magnetism is that throws out a far-reaching 
control so many millions of miles in space, and keeps all 
the planets in their proper realms, cannot be known or 
explained. It is best to call it an influence. It is not a 
substance. It is not an ether. It has all the power of a 
cable, or a rope as many miles in diameter as you choose 
to imagine, but it is neither. All stars that shine in the 
sky are supposed to be the central orbs of systems like 
our own, each holding their subjects in sway by the same 
law of magnetism; and it is a wise provision that these 
systems are far apart from each other, for they would 
draw one another out of shape if they could. 

The centrifugal force of the planet is said to keep it in 
motion and ever tending to fly from the sun, while mag¬ 
netism holds it in check, or calls it back. This may ac¬ 
count for the fact that the orbs in this solar system are 
kept regularly in their places, and move with the preci¬ 
sion of clockwork. But it is either true that the magnet¬ 
ism of one solar system is limited to its own realm, or 
that it extends into space beyond its own realm. In the 
latter case, no matter how feeble it might be, some influ¬ 
ence would travel to other systems; and, as time is 
nothing, such influence would eventually bring the whole 
heavens together. Such is possibly the destiny of the 
universe, or one of its changes; though the same laws that 
now prevent conflict in our system might protect the orbs 
in the more general melee. 

From the larger influences of magnetism, you may 
come down to any lesser use and still find this force at 
work managing things. Rays of sunlight are undoubt¬ 
edly atoms impelled forth by the sun; and they might 
travel on forever and be lost in space, but for the in- 


14 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


fluence of their own magnetism which causes them to 
unite and join the nearest orb in making up its hulk; 
or else they might go back to the sun, and no planets 
be built. The earth and its sister orbs are all thus taken 
from the sun; and scientists have shown that the latter 
is losing some of its light and size, as you may ascertain 
by reading any extensive work upon the subject of the 
sun. From the greatest to the smallest, and through all 
matter from an atom to a world, magnetism is universal. 
It is the executive power of creation and of creative 
progress. 




All matter is endowed with magnetism. 

This is the Second Principle. We may judge of the 
whole universe by what we are able to ascertain in and on 
our little globe. As it is well proved that the earth is 
made out of the sun, the material of one must be the same 
as the material of the other. Even rays of light are in¬ 
finite mineral atoms of sun-matter, out of which molecules 
are made. Time, which is nothing, is alone necessary to 
the construction of all objects, from particles of dust to 
great planets out of a single structure, the indivisible 
atom. 

Let this atom hold in itself the power of attraction, and 
we see at once the solution of all questions relating to 
magnetism. By a certain class of affinities, molecules, 
which are the basis of the chemical elements, are built 
out of atoms, each and all alike. It is not what a thing 
is, but how it is put together, that determines its size, 
shape, weight and strength. Chemists tell us there are 
about seventy elements from which all matter is made, 
whether liquid, gaseous, or solid. These elements are 
changing in number, as discovery reveals their identity 


REALM ONE 


15 


with, others, or separation from old affiliations. We will 
assume there are seventy. They account for all the ma¬ 
terial world, with its contents, animate and inanimate; 
and for all the orbs in the solar system, as well as for the 
sun itself. 

These elements are arrangements of molecules, and 
what they are depends upon the construction of their 
molecules. The latter need be nothing more than fixed 
arrangements of atoms. Single atoms flying loose are 
light. This is elementary, and is the beginning of all 
matter. Let atoms come together as twos, or in pairs, 
and the result would be the lightest gas known. Mag¬ 
netism is eternally tending to bring atoms together. 
The impulse of fire is tending to separate them, and thus 
in the dark night a fire produces light. The greater im¬ 
pulse of the sun drives them forth separated, but light 
soon changes to gas of some kind. One kind of atom, 
one shape, is all that is needed. Arrangement in pairs, 
and in fixed conditions, will produce gases, liquids and 
solids; first by forming molecules; next by the affinity 
of fixed classes of molecules for each other. 

Magnetism expresses itself in every act of material con¬ 
struction. As soon as the atoms are sufficiently released 
from the impulse of the sun’s force, they obey their own 
laws of affinity, and come together under some guiding in¬ 
telligence in fixed conditions. The same thought that 
tells the seed of the flower to send down roots, and its 
root fibres to draw certain sustenances in particles from 
the soil is able to make classes into which atoms may 
arrange themselves. Thus there are but two necessary 
forces behind all creation, mind and magnetism; and of 
these the single, indivisible atom is the agent and instru¬ 
ment. 

That force which calls the atoms out of their onward 
rush from the impelling energy of the sun and draws 
them together, is atomic magnetism. That which holds 


16 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


them in combinations for the construction of chemical 
elements, is molecular magnetism. Scientists call it mo¬ 
lecular attraction, which is the same thing. That which 
causes a mass of matter to hold together is cohesion; 
and this is also magnetism. That which draws one mass 
toward another is gravity; and this likewise is magnetism. 
In fact, it may be safely asserted that the same original 
atomic magnetism attends the particles and follows them 
all through matter, causing the phenomena of cohesion 
and gravity. Without this primitive energy, it is not 
possible to explain either force. 

Whether the precise statement of the theory is accur¬ 
ate or not, something akin to it is the fact, and that is 
the important part of it. Therefore, when atoms, mind 
and magnetism are at hand, creation may begin. Nothing 
else is needed. Atoms furnish the basis of all material 
construction; magnetism is the force that constructs; 
and mind determines how and what shall be made. 
Atoms could not create themselves; magnetism is an en¬ 
dowment, and endowments imply a giver; mind is 
thought whose limit is omniscence requiring a supreme 
intelligence behind it; and all these essentials are results, 
not original causes. They compel a recognition of the 
Creator; unless it is true that something can originate 
from nothing. As the study proceeds, we shall see the 
use of the endowment of magnetism in every act of life 
and in every operation of matter from the least to the 
greatest. Without it, all substance would fly apart, all 
growth cease, and all thought be barren. 

“As ships that pass in the night 
And speak each other in passing, 

Only a signal given and a 
Distant voice in the darkness; 

So on the ocean of life we 
Pass and speak one another ,— 

Only a look and a voice, then 
Darkness again, and a silence.” 


REALM ONE 


1? 



There are no non-material forces. 

This is the Third Principle. We would not think of 
calling electricity a spiritual force. Its operations are 
becoming more and more known; but what its substance 
is, and much of its real nature, are yet undiscovered. 
Still we regard it as a material force. The same is true 
of other laws, such as gravity and cohesion. The object 
falls to the ground, but the power that brings it down 
or holds it there is not spiritual. The atmosphere is 
lighter than the earth, but none of it is lost in space, for 
the same law of gravity keeps it within the range of 
this orb’s attraction. 

No more serious puzzle is possible than to explain 
wherein gravity has its existence, or what it is; for we 
know merely what it does. Is it matter? No one thinks 
it is. It dwells in matter, so we are told, and yet there 
is no evidence that it dwells anywhere. The law of co¬ 
hesion is fully as mysterious. We see masses held to^ 
gether by some silent power, each molecule clinging to 
each other without hook or lashing cord. Such a force 
is marvelous, yet it is not spiritual. No one pretends 
that a spirit keeps iron together. Perhaps the power 
itself has no material existence, but it lives in matter, 
and for that reason must be classed as a material force. 

Electricity is called a fluid, chiefly because it emits a 
spark in small currents, or a ball of fire when larger 
masses or volumes are expended. This evidence of 
fluidity or of fire may be purely deceptive. A cold stone, 
a meteor flying through space is invisible; but let it 
strike the atmosphere that surrounds this earth, and the 
speed will create a friction that will make the object 
red-hot, sometimes consuming it by reducing its solid ma- 


18 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


terial to gas. Why may not lightning and electricity set 
the air itself on fire, or the gases in the air? When the 
current is perfectly conducted from place to place, it is 
invisible. Resting in a storage jar, it shows neither light, 
heat nor fire. It is in breaking that it shows itself, and 
its breaking is merely an attempt to leap some distance 
which impedes its course; or the ball that seems so clearly 
visible and so powerful may be a collection of matter 
caught up and carried along by the fearful rush of the 
current. 

It is in interrupting the perfect course, in making a 
break in the line of travel by which it is conducted, that 
every known quality, attribute, characteristic and power 
of electricity, are known; and any instance that seems to 
contradict this statement can be analyzed down to its 
exact truth. On the other hand, there is no fire, no light, 
and no heat in either electricity or lightning when un¬ 
interrupted. The message that speeds from Boston to 
San Francisco gives no evidence, night or day, of its 
existence; nor would the operator be able to recognize 
it unless he were to check it and read the meaning of its 
interruptions. The principle of the telephone is in the 
disc-vibrations which interfere with the electrical cur¬ 
rents by the action of the vibrations of the voice. Light 
is produced by imperfect conduction, which amounts to 
the same thing as partial interruption of the flow. 

Our purpose in this line of thought is to suggest that 
perhaps electricity produces, but is not, fire, heat and 
light; because these appear only when the current is 
active. If so, then it may take its place with such forces 
as gravity and cohesion; the former causing large bodies 
to approach each other, the latter holding molecules to¬ 
gether. These all affect matter, yet have no material 
existence; and are probably endowments of matter. They 
are not non-material forces; for, if so, they would be en¬ 
dowments of spiritual life. Because a ball thrown in 


REALM 0 m 


19 


the air will drop to the ground, does not prove that its 
falling is due to some spiritual attribute. Gravity is 
not matter; it is an endowment of matter; and is there¬ 
fore a material force. 

The time is ripe when, in the history of mankind, the 
fear of the unknown should be abolished. No one hopes 
to grasp the reins of knowledge whose mind is unable to 
travel; for we are shut in on this little orb, without op¬ 
portunity of stepping off to visit the sister spheres of 
the sky, and all beyond us must be viewed in wonderment. 
What we can learn is the nature and purpose of the laws 
at work in our own bodies, in our minds, in our souls, 
and in the operations of life about us, reserving the dis¬ 
covery of the great universe itself to some happier era, 
and in some nobler clime, to which we may be invited, 
or from which we may be excluded. 



The two necessary forces behind all creation are mind 
and magnetism. 

This is the Fourth Principle. It is not what matter can 
do, but what can be done with matter, that makes life 
powerful. Forces count for everything; matter for 
nothing. Archimedes could have moved the world had 
he been able to find a fulcrum on which to place a lever, 
and the energy would have controlled matter, even 
though it were not material. It so happens that chem¬ 
istry can analyze nothing but matter, or that which is 
used, not that which uses it. This is a small field of 
analysis in the realm of creation; though complete in 
itself. 

Creation involves the necessity of something to build 
with. The architect first ascertains what he is to do, 
the size, shape and uses of the structure that is needed. 


20 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


He plans it; this is mind. He then turns it over to the 
energy that is to do the work of building. Magnetism 
is the builder of the universe. In order to erect a struc¬ 
ture, mind and energy must spend themselves on some¬ 
thing material. This is true when God builds, or when 
man builds. Matter is merely the substance to be used 
to give shape and reality to the forces that exist; and it 
cannot be possible that there is any existence without 
matter. This assertion does not intrude upon the idea 
of the life of the soul. 

All energy comes from magnetism, whether individual 
or collective. Individual energy is that which each atom 
possesses to attract others to itself. Collective energy in 
chemistry is that which each molecule expresses in estab¬ 
lishing its affinity for others of its class. Collective 
energy in life, whether animal or vegetable, is the nervous 
force behind the muscles, or the mental force behind both. 
These concern us most in this present study. As life 
comes up the scale, and as matter increases in the size and 
importance of its arrangement, the collective power of 
magnetism becomes greater and more useful. It reaches 
its climax in mankind. 

Mind is associated with organic matter. By this kind 
of matter is meant not only that which is part of some or¬ 
ganized body in the animal or vegetable kingdom, but 
also the general fund of disorganized life which is want¬ 
ing to enter again into organized bodies. This fund may 
be associated with inorganic matter, yet be no part of 
it. Wherever protoplasm will form, there is mind. The 
cells from the tiniest bacteria up to amoebic structures, 
and every form of plasmic growth, are impelled in their 
natures by intelligences that lie in the nuclei in the parts 
called ids. Each perfect cell, or life, contains a nucleus, 
and each nucleus contains an id. Here we see matter, 
magnetism and mind. The mass of the cell is the ma¬ 
terial part; the nucleus the nervous or magnetic part; 


REALM ONE 


21 


and the id the intelligence. These are collective energies, 
and dwell in matter as endowments of it. 

It seems that these forces have been given to matter, 
and that it then has been left to work out the problems of 
growth under the direction of accident and circumstances. 
The cell development of plants is necessarily the result 
of an ever present intelligence in the cells and plants 
themselves; but such an intelligence blindly follows 
wherever it is bidden. One variety goes on renewing its 
kind until a chance mixture in the seed, or the directing 
hand of culture produces a deviation; then the same in¬ 
telligence within the life goes on as blindly as before. 
No human mind can conceive the full process, nor human 
skill execute the work required in the making of the 
simplest plant; and, were the thoughtful care suspended 
but a minute, the structure would collapse; yet such in¬ 
telligence is altogether blind, while keener than the brain 
of man. 

The same skillful but impulsive energy is seen in the 
magnetism with which all matter is endowed. No work 
could be more perfect and more far reaching, yet at the 
same time more blindly done. But we have the satis¬ 
faction of knowing that, as organisms rise from their 
lower planes, the collective mental and magnetic energies 
concentrate themselves in brain and nerves, and then 
assume command, not only of themselves, but of the mat¬ 
ter and life around. It seems to be the will of nature that 
combination and concentration of the very forces that 
produce themselves shall come to direct and partly con¬ 
trol themselves. 

“Gather a shell from the strown leach 
And listen at its lips: they sigh 
The same desire and mystery, 

The echo of the whole sea’s speech. 

And all mankind is thus at heart 
Not anything lut what thou art: 

And Earth, Sea, Man, are all in each.” 


22 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


I., B .J 


Magnetism is a positive force. 

This is the Fifth Principle. There are many kinds of 
magnetism, but they are all probably resolvable into the 
same force. We believe that force to be electricity, and 
to be the same whether it is manifested as mere electricity 
or as some form of magnetism. It is common to hear of 
mechanical magnetism, of vegetable magnetism, and of 
animal magnetism; but, when that which is termed 
mechanical was found to be an associate of ordinary 
electricity, investigators began to see if one was really 
not a condition of the other. 

The force that leaps from the clouds in the thunder¬ 
storms was suspected by Franklin to be of the same na¬ 
ture as that which was generated by the electrical ma¬ 
chine. He believed that he had proved this to be true; 
and, as the latter was known as mechanical or machine- 
electricity, it was perfectly proper to speak of the same 
energy in nature as mechanical, although a difference 
in terms might be of some slight value. These constitute 
the two great divisions of this force. It is, however, de¬ 
batable whether that electrical energy which is well 
recognized as the foundation of animal vitality is identi¬ 
cal with mechanical electricity, is one of its uses, or is an 
entirely separate force; and this may be worth consider¬ 
ing elsewhere. 

That animal life possesses electricity has been an 
established fact for some thousands of years. The skin 
and hair is capable of generating by friction the common 
mechanical electricity, and this we have no right to re¬ 
gard as anything further. By animal electricity is meant 
that which dwells in the life of the inner organism. We 
stroke a cat’s back, we run a comb through our own 


BEALM ONE 


23 


hair, we rub our hands together, we walk on the carpet; a 
spark that flies from the tip of the finger, or that portion 
of the body which is first brought in contact with a con¬ 
ducting agency, must be classed with those types of elec¬ 
tricity that are generated by mechanical devices, for they 
are identical in character. 

Persons who throw off sparks developed in any of these 
ways are fond of believing that they are charged with an 
abundance of magnetism. In this they are mistaken. 
Energy so acquired is never retained; even the slight 
moisture in the air absorbs it. This may be seen from the 
fact that there is no storage resulting from friction of the 
hair, as the cat neither gains nor loses by the operation. 
It is very easy to excite surface electricity by rubbing 
the feet upon a carpet, and this is no deeper than the 
cuticle; it spends itself if not used at once. It has not been 
generated within, is not carried within, and vanishes al¬ 
most in the making. On the other hand, the person who 
is able to generate electricity by controlling the life 
forces within the body, is also able to retain it and use it 
at will. One such person, possessing determined energy, 
will throw off hundreds of sparks from the tips of the 
fingers, and yet check them instantly if so desired. He 
can take the hand of another and send a current of fire 
through the body, or yield nothing but a cold and clammy 
touch, letting out or holding back as he may decree. 

Animal electricity answers to all the laws of mechan¬ 
ical electricity; the only seeming difference being in the 
fact that the former is controlled largely by the will of 
man, while the latter runs free. This difference, however, 
is not real. Man collects his energy from the general 
fund of nature, and holds it in storage by some kind of in¬ 
sulation. He bottles some part of the lightning, draws 
this force out of the still atmosphere, or generates it by 
chemical action; the animal organism does all these. 
From the remarks thus far made it is apparent that the 


24 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


body is associated with both mechanical and animal elec¬ 
tricity. But there is another and more important kind 
which is connected with the growth of the body; and this 
may be called vital electricity. Then the brain is a 
special organ whose thinking process depends entirely 
npon still another kind known as mental electricity. 
Later on in this volume we will discuss these and more 
besides. 

Electricity and magnetism mean nearly the same, but 

there is a distinction between them. No sooner was it 
discovered that electricity was a standing as well as a 
moving fluid or energy, than the other fact appeared that 
it existed for the purpose of attracting or repelling. It 
was as though matter had been endowed with affinities 
and dislikes, and then electricity was a force extracted 
from these two characteristics. Held in abeyance or 
under control by being insulated, it is always seeking the 
means of escape .either toward some condition whose in¬ 
fluence it obeys or commands, or from an enmity which 
repels it. It has been said of it that it is positive and 
negative; that two positive currents repel each other; 
that two negative currents repel each other; and that a 
positive current and negative attract each other. It has 
been claimed that these are opposite uses of the same 
energy. 

No magnetism exists that is not electrical in its nature; 
and no electricity exists that cannot be turned to magnet¬ 
ism. This is true of every kind, mechanical as well as 
others. Those who are most successful in harnessing the 
forces of nature are free to admit that while much is 
understood of the uses of this power, little or nothing is 
known of what it is, or in what condition it exists. The 
spark, the flash, the ball of fire, or the bolt of lightning, 
may be matter consumed by the speed of this energy, and 
not the force itself; therefore, until more is known of its 
true nature, it is not safe to regard it as fire, heat, or any 


REALM ONE 


25 


form of these. Water thrown upon a burning building in 
a quantity less than sufficient to drown the flames, will 
add to them and burn like oil; so the lightning that 
travels through vaporous clouds at the speed of many 
miles a second may turn moisture to fire and leave a 
gleaming path of combustion even at the end of its course. 

If electricity is an energy merely, it may be of the same 
kind, or identical with gravity and cohesion. We know 
that particles are held together by the attraction of their 
atoms or molecules, and that these are not fastened by 
interlacing or hooking; we also know that under other 
conditions particles of solid matter fly apart and become 
antagonizing gases; these are due to magnetism and re¬ 
pulsion. We believe that fire is one form of this repul¬ 
sion, and solidity its absence. Cohesion then is an 
energy. Gravity is a similar force, and may be identical 
with it. It is powerful enough to hold all the elements 
and properties of this planet together under one system of 
government, to hold all planets and their intervening orbs 
together in the sun’s great family, and probably the sun 
itself in its proper place in the universe. It is possible 
that electricity is merely the energy of gravity collected 
out of matter for temporary uses; and it seems almost 
probable that this is so for all matter is imbued with 
gravity, all gravity is an attracting force that is at home 
or in equilibrium when undisturbed, electricity pervades 
all matter, is restive when out of equilibrium, and is quiet 
when back again in matter. 

If you will imagine two particles of matter so small 
that you can see them only under the most powerful 
microscope, clinging together without an apparent rea¬ 
son; and the myriad millions of other particles holding 
themselves together in the same mass, you will have an 
illustration of what is meant by the magnetic property 
of common electricity. Where this property exists, 
whether in or through the mass, or at the edges or sur- 


26 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


faces of molecules, is not known. Whether it is a mind, 
or an intelligent force with which all things are blindly 
endowed, amounts to one and the same thing. It is 
electrical energy, magnetic because it attracts, because 
it controls other substance, because it holds together the 
parts that must be bound to each other to make the 
strength of the whole, and because it obeys other master¬ 
minds. 

Vitality may be a separate fund, and intelligence still 
another fund, dwelling apart by themselves and coming 
to matter when conditions are ripe for action; or vitality 
and intelligence may dwell in a certain division of matter 
through which they control such other portions as they 
may be able to influence. In the first case these forces 
make use of matter; in the second case they dwell in it 
and are blindly attached to it, following fixed laws in 
their operations. Like the energies which are called 
gravity and cohesion, vitality and intelligence may be 
uses of electricity; and, the more we study them, the 
easier it is to believe that all power can be traced to this 
one mother-force. How much of this may be true may, for 
the present, be held as problematical. Those who regard 
the universe as divisible into two parts, the material and 
non-material, subdivide the latter part into energies of 
material, and into spiritual forces; but, until a single 
energy whether attributable to matter or spirit can be 
described, it is too early to construct a system of explana¬ 
tion based upon laws of the spiritual. There is as 
much mystery attached to the forces which we know 
govern them, as to those which are supposed to govern 
the soul; and the mind at times gives evidence of super¬ 
natural powers which defy all explanation. It may be 
true that one and all are merely different uses of one great 
endowment, electricity or magnetism. These problems 
and questions will receive full attention in the pages of 
this volume. 


REALM ONE 


27 


Magnetism, on its positive side, works for life and 
growth. When it welds particle to particle it gives form 
to matter; it constructs, and out of it we get the strength 
of iron, the tenuity of wire, the elasticity of rubber, and 
all those qualities which make these forms useful and yet 
of different characteristics. On no other ground than 
magnetism can these things be accounted for. Release its 
positive and affirmative nature, and form is lost, mole¬ 
cules drop apart, decay sets in and life, growth and con¬ 
structs strength no longer exists. It lifts the vapor 
from the ground, separating it from water by a change in 
specific gravity; then, when it has attained its height in 
the atmosphere it is again given over to the magnetism of 
gravity by condensation. Under a similar operation it 
prevents rive’rs from freezing to solidity and thereby 
becoming useless. It interchanges the strata of air pro¬ 
ducing temperatures and barometric changes whereby 
vegetation is protected. In this way we might go on 
almost indefinitely citing instances of the usefulness of 
magnetism as a positive force; the loss of any one of 
which would instantly destroy all life on this planet. 

Mind and thought are magnetic phenomena. The 
physical brain is a battery of electricity peculiarly 
adapted to those vibrations which occur for the reception 
of ideas, and those other vibrations by which ideas are 
generated and sent forth into the system to be enacted 
into realities. It is not the reception of an idea, but its 
formulation and going forth out into the great sea of 
human thought, that exhibits the positive power of man’s 
magnetism in this realm. The power behind the creation 
of ideas, whether from the reasoning faculties or from 
t-he will, is something that becomes a tremendous energy 
under the stimulus of the being in control. Not only in 
what is said, but in the way in which it is uttered, in 
the vital energy that propels its utterance, in the mag¬ 
netic fires that burn in the tones of the voice, and in the 


28 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


vigor of mind which makes the same idea a different in¬ 
strument of power when put in a stronger framework of 
construction, does positive electricity show itself in the 
life of one who is supreme master of the faculties with 
which nature has endowed him. 



Hypnotism is a negative condition. 

This is the Sixth Principle. The word negative may 
have more than one signification. Ordinarily it means 
a denial or refusal to believe a certain affirmative propo¬ 
sition. Again it means the mere lack of anything, and 
in this use it denotes absence. In speaking of electricity 
it is merely a term of convenience supposed to distinguish 
one kind of a current from another, although the idea 
of repellant action is associated with it. We are speak¬ 
ing of a condition that is the opposite of magnetism, and 
in so doing our use of the word comes close to the mean¬ 
ing of absence. 

On a sunny day we sit beneath the shade of a large tree 
and our principle reflection is that we are out of the in¬ 
tense light; but there is brightness all around us in lesser 
degree. On a cloudy day we see the earth entirely en¬ 
veloped in the protecting shade, but the sun is shining 
above it all. In the night we ride on the dark side of the 
planet, not thinking or stopping to think that the very 
darkness in which we are enveloped is the negative con¬ 
dition of the sunshine; but no night is so dark, not even 
when the clouds shut out the stars, that there is not some 
light somewhere out of doors. It is only when we shut 
ourselves within walls more opaque than sky-clouds that 
it can be said that all light is extinguished; and even then 
the phosphorescence of the brain shining in the eyes, and 
of germ-life, steps in with atomic rays. 


BEALM ONE 


29 


There is no shadow without light; so there is no hyp¬ 
notism without magnetism; light is a positive force, 
shadow is a negative condition; it cannot be called a force 
as it possesses no energy. Take all the light away and 
darkness would be complete; take all the magnetism out 
of a person, and the hypnotic condition is then complete, 
assuming that life remains. As it is difficult to find abso¬ 
lute darkness, so it is rare that magnetism is entirely 
lacking in a human life. Light comes from the sun 
directly, from the electric current, from coal, wood, the 
candle and the many forms of combustible material, as 
well as from phosphorescence, which is the glow of ele¬ 
mentary atoms widely scattered. Light is, therefore, of 
every kind and of every degree of intensity; and the 
same may be said of magnetism, except that, while it is 
more limited in variety, it has the widest possible range 
of force and quality. 

What seems less intense darkness at one time than 
another is merely a variation of light either in its quality 
or quantity. We often meet persons of whom we might 
say, carelessly speaking, that they are entirely devoid of 
magnetism; being straws in the wind of others ’ influence; 
so we often enter rooms, or pass through groves at night, 
where darkness seems to he complete, yet some light is 
there. These remarks are made to illustrate the point 
that few persons exist without some magnetic vitality. 
Strictly speaking, it cannot be said of them that they 
are in the negative condition referred to under our prin¬ 
ciple; so, strictly speaking, we can rarely ever declare 
any place to be absolutely dark. Darkness, however, is 
generally referred to as a condition opposite to that of 
light; and we designate that state in which the magnetic 
energy is low as partly hypnotic; although not involving 
complete unconsciousness of the natural mind. 

It is necessary to understand that hypnotism does not 
always or generally exhibit itself in the sleep state. 


30 


UNIVEBSAL MAGNETISM 


There is a certain average line in which the magnetism 
of an individual may be said to be normal; above whicn 
it may be called abundant and therefore, positive, as we 
use the term; and below this dividing line, as the vitality 
departs from the average or normal, it enters into the 
hypnotic or negative condition. With this understand¬ 
ing we can make clear to our students the various degrees 
of influence by which persons are more or less deprived 
of their magnetism below the normal plane, and are 
brought into the hypnotic state, without showing any 
semblance of sleep. Thus hypnotism, in a partial state, 
manifests itself in persons who are wide awake and have 
no knowledge that their magnetism is being taken from 
them. This corresponds to the partial absence of light, 
when gloom prevails without actual darkness. 

The true cataleptic sleep involves a loss of conscious¬ 
ness in the natural mind; all the functions of the body are 
at a standstill; breathing has ceased, so that death might 
be announced were it not for some symptoms which indi¬ 
cate the trance condition; and the nerves are insensible 
to pain, in so far that they may be subjected to flame 
without recoiling. This is a complete negative state, in 
which all magnetism is absent. Such a condition comes 
on of itself through the process of disease that separates 
the storage batteries of vitality from the nervous system, 
rendering the mind useless. The body is dead in a 
magnetic sense, but lives for days, and even weeks, as an 
insensible piece of plant life, its only functions that are 
alive being those that are directly inherited from the 
vegetable kingdom, and these in a minimum degree. 

So extreme a condition is rarely met with in any human 
being who is not actually diseased. As in the case of 
Bishop, the mind-reader, it is sometimes possible for a 
person to put himself in this depleted state; but the clair¬ 
voyants, of whom there are a few who are genuine, rarely 
ever enter the full cataleptic state, as it is not necessary 


REALM ONE 


31 


in order to open np the sub-conscious mind. This shows 
that the faculties which awaken under the hypnotic in¬ 
fluence are not necessarily developed by a prior exhaus¬ 
tion of magnetism, after the first experiences. In the 
attempt to subjugate the will of a person, it is generally 
considered necessary to completely expel all magnetic 
vitality; but this is used in the sense of expelling all light 
from a room that is only ordinarily dark. The word com¬ 
plete, as will be seen, does not mean totally complete, ex¬ 
cept in true cataleptic conditions. 

It was formerly supposed that hypnotism resulted from 
a peculiar influence exerted only by a person gifted in 
that direction. This is now known to be untrue. There 
is no such thing as the gift of hypnotizing; but it does 
require skill and a special talent for suggestion. Hyp¬ 
notism brings on a cataleptic sleep, but cataleptics are not 
able to show the uses of the sub-conscious faculty until 
they have been led on by his art of suggesting to them the 
things to be done and said. Ordinarily the victim of the 
disease known by this name is worthless as a subject for 
experiment in this line; so would a person be who had 
been put into the usual hypnotic sleep without the aid 
of suggestions to open out this faculty. We, therefore, 
see that an operator is required, who must handle his 
subject with skill and turn the hypnotism to account. 

Instead of the gift of hypnotism, we must speak of the 
gift of suggestion; and this is an art that is rare indeed. 
Perhaps we may be wrong in inferring that it does not 
require skill to bring on the cataleptic sleep; it does re¬ 
quire skill to exhaust the magnetism of another person, 
but this belongs to one who is able, through superior 
magnetic vitality, to absorb what energy there may be in 
the subject, which of itself leaves him in mesmeric sleep. 
The first essential is to find the individual who may thus 
be overcome; the second, is to find one who has sufficient 
magnetism to conquer the other; the third, is to combine 


32 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


with the latter the skill of suggestion, so that to take ad¬ 
vantage of the mesmeric sleep. All this would look as if 
there must be some person gifted in hypnotizing; and, 
taken in a popular sense, all persons are so gifted to a 
greater or less degree, except that they have not the 
skill to follow up the advantage by the art of suggestion. 

Self-hypnotism is more common than that of personal 
influence. This being true, it may be understood how a 
man who had never practiced either branch of the art in 
his life, on catching a friend of his in the act of mesmeriz¬ 
ing himself by looking at a silver ball, put to test what 
he had read in books by making suggestions just as his 
friend was falling into the hypnotic sleep. To his sur¬ 
prise the latter talked and acted like an experienced sub¬ 
ject; he obeyed the amateur operator to a degree of 
perfection that finally alarmed him; and he had some diffi¬ 
culty in bringing him out of this condition. The most 
surprising result of all was the fact that he secured con¬ 
trol over his friend so that he could put him into the mes¬ 
meric sleep at will. This shows that there is no such 
thing as the gift of hypnotism, that the state of sub¬ 
jection may be produced by other causes than those 
emanating from the influence of individuals, and that any 
person who is reasonably magnetic may step in with the 
art of suggesting and turn the sleeper into a subcon¬ 
scious subject. 




“In thy soul, as m a sleep, 

Gods or -fiends aYe hidden deep, 

Awful forms of mystery, 

And spirits, all unknown to thee; 
Guard with prayer, and heed with care, 
Ere thou wak’st them from their lairf ft 


REALM TWO 



Y OU meaner beauties of the night, 

That poorly satisfy our eyes 
More by your numbers than your light, — 
You common people of the skies, 

What are you when the moon shall rise?” 


Protection Against 
Hypnotism 


R OUND the first object doth it overflow, 

Which, be it fair or foul, is sure to win us 
Out of ourselves. We clothe with our own nature 
The man or woman its first want doth find. 

The leafless prop with our own hands we bind, 
And hide in blossoms; fill the empty feature 
With our own meanings; even prize defects 
Which keep the mark of our own choice upon 
The chosen; bless each fault whose spot protects 
Our choice from possible confusion 
With the world’s other creatures; we believe them 
What most we wish, the more we find they are not; 
Our choice once made, with our own choice we 
war not; 

We worship them for what ourselves we give them.” 

» ( 33 ) 


LUCIFER’S PHILOSOPHY 


<g@«Si 

“ A Y, if forgetting and eternal hope 
f\ Were not to destiny so closely wed; — 
The one doth heal thy bleeding wounds, 

The other closely screens abysmal depths, 

And gives new courage, saying, — 

Rash hundreds found a grave therein, 

Thou shalt be the first to safely leap it o’er. 
Hast not thou, scholar, full oft beheld 
The many freaks and whims among 
The parasites that brood and breed 
In cats and owls only, 

But must pass in mice their earliest stage 
Of slow development? 

Not just the one or other mouse 
Predestined is the claw to feel 
Of cat or owl; who cautious is 
May even both avoid, and keep 
In ripe old age its nest and house. 

A relentless hand doth yet provide 
Just such a number for his foes 
As its presence here on earth 
Ages hence insures. 

Nor is the human being bound. 

And yet the race wears chains. 

Zeal carries thee like a flood along: 

To-day for this, for that to-morrow, 

The funeral pyres will their victims claim, 

And of scoffers there will be no lack; 

While he who registers the count 
Will be in wonder lost, that wanton fate 
Should have maintained such rare consistency 
In making, matching, marring, 

In virtue, faith, and sin and death, 

In suicide and lunacy.” 

( 34 ) 




Protection Against 
Hypnotism 


“The soul, secured in her existence smiles 
At the drawn dagger, and defies its point. 
The stars shall fade away, the sun himself 
Crown dim with age, and nature sink, in years; 
But thou shalt flourish in immortal youth, 
Unhurt amidst the war of elements, 

The wreck of matter, and the crush of worlds.” 


A COMPLETE COURSE OF LESSONS IN THE 
DEFENSE AGAINST HYPNOTISM 



'‘I sent my soul through the Invisible, 

Some letter of the after life to spell: 

And by and by my Soul returned to me, 

And answer’d “I Myself am Heav’n and Hell.” 

OT everything that can be acquired is worth ac¬ 
quiring. The privilege of putting a defenceless 
person to sleep, and then waking him up into a 
different state of consciousness wherein he is 
made the victim of your own whims and the stray 
influences of other minds, is sought because it is con¬ 
sidered an evidence of power. The graver question is, 
whether it compensates for the trouble and efforts that 
are entailed upon the operator, and the injury it does to 
the nervous system of the subject. 

As long as the matter remains so obscure as at the 

35 











36 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


present time, so long will men and women seek the knowl¬ 
edge that will enable them to acquire the power of hyp¬ 
notizing their fellow beings. You may not know it, but 
the numbers that are eagerly inquiring for this knowl¬ 
edge are surprisingly large. Most applicants disclaim 
the intention of taking advantage of* those they may 
control, even deeming it praiseworthy if good is done 
them through this means. In personal letters, almost 
without limit, we have for years advised all corre¬ 
spondents to drop the idea and cling only to the nobler 
art of magnetism; but, amidst it all, there comes the 
persistent demand for a clear understanding of hypno¬ 
tism. Men and women will have the knowledge, cost 
what it may. Our duty was then made plain. 

Deception and fraud are more rampant in this line of 
publications than in most any other. Those who know 
how the art of hypnotizing is acquired seem unwilling 
to part with their knowledge; for what good reason 
it is hard to say. Those who know something of this art, 
but not all, are most free to impart this and much more 
added. The result is that the public are never sure of 
what they are getting. Only recently we saw a private 
pamphlet for which a man of intelligence paid fifty dol¬ 
lars; and it contained sixty pages of impossible instruc¬ 
tion, mixed with good and bad advice. We showed the 
uselessness of the work by comparing the pretended les¬ 
sons with the genuine; the former wasting energy for 
nothing, the latter giving results in a satisfactory man¬ 
ner. 

A wife asked for instructions of such a nature that 
would enable her to control her husband so as to prevent 
his ruin through drink. The request was a worthy one, 
the object in view most commendable; but hypnotism 
could not check his appetite for liquor except when he 
was in a sub-conscious frame of mind, or partly so; and 
we advised magnetizing the man instead of hypnotizing 


PBOTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 37, 

him. After repeated letters and arguments we succeeded 
in explaining the difference, with the result that the 
woman adopted magnetism and made a man of her hus¬ 
band. A similar request came from a woman who loved 
a young man and desired to secure his consent to marry¬ 
ing her; so she asked for lessons in hypnotism, thinking 
that a cataleptic would propose to her. He might do so 
while in that condition, but not intelligently. We 
showed to her the difference, and she used magnetism 
with perfect success. We cite these two cases, which 
really are typical ones, because certain advertising 
teachers strongly advised the use of hypnotism, and 
failure could not be avoided. 

All persons may acquire magnetism, and most persons 
may learn to mesmerize. No one need fail to magnetize; 
many fail to mesmerize. Of those in the latter class who 
do fail, the majority do so, not from lack of knowledge 
or correct training, but from lack of courage and tact at 
the crucial moment; as, for instance, when the subject 
is poised in that doubtful mood when a quick release will 
seem like a gift from the operator, and he is left too long 
before being released; thus realizing his own power in¬ 
stead of the manipulators. For this reason and because 
of tact at the right moment, or second, many subjects are 
lost; and it may, therefore, be said that all persons who 
might become hypnotizers, will not. Yet the advertising 
teachers go on guaranteeing that all will acquire the art. 
If it were true that all may, it is not true that all will. 
A commercial college promised that every pupil in its 
charge would become a good penman, and learn to write 
a neat and beautiful hand; for the reason that the art 
was one that all could acquire. This may have been an 
honest fallacy. It is true that nearly every person, if not 
all, may learn to write a neat and beautiful hand; but it 
is not true that half of those who may do so, will do so. 
The same is true of hypnotizing. Very few of those 


38 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


who are unable to acquire the power, have the tact to 
win at the crucial moment. Some who fail at one time, 
succeed later on. 

Patrons of reliable teachers are sure to blame their 
instructors because of this failure. In some cases the 
teachers are to blame; for they should make their work 
so clear and so plain that even stupid pupils may under¬ 
stand; but this does not give tact and skill. It may help. 
The fault may be with the method. It is wrong to take 
tuition fees from those who are not likely to succeed, 
unless there is a clear understanding that the primary 
purpose of the instruction is to show the way to avoid 
the hypnotic influence of another; or to save oneself from 
the horrors of self-mesmerism. This is always a worthy 
object, and should be encouraged. 

There are several ways of taking lessons in this nega¬ 
tive art. Many if not all traveling mesmerists advertise 
to give instructions in their work, and go so far as to 
guarantee success in a few lessons. The fee they charge 
is a very flexible one; if the applicant is poor, it is never 
less than twenty-five dollars; and a promise of secrecy 
is properly asked for and given. If the would-be-pupil 
is able to pay, the amount demanded is large; and there 
are instances of five thousand dollars being paid at the 
beginning, before a single lesson was taken; while more 
was stipulated for under a conditional contract in which 
no payment was to be made unless the mesmeric power 
was in fact acquired. The instructor saw that it was ac¬ 
quired. 

It is the rule of mesmeric teachers, if they are traveling 
operators, not to give results even where they can. Some 
take a fee of twenty-five or fifty dollars, and impart cor¬ 
rect knowledge, then ask for another fee on the ground 
that it is a difficult case. To do this they avoid making 
a promise to complete the instruction for the first fee. 
Some assure their applicants of success by word of 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 39 


mouth; then supersede this by printed or written con¬ 
tracts containing clause to the contrary, which have legal 
force. It seems to be understood that a successful oper¬ 
ator does not wish competition. He tells as little as he 
can, and leaves his pupil to hunt for more, but in vain. 
Sometimes he checks the progress of the lessons by fall¬ 
ing back upon a stipulation and demanding a further 
fee that cannot be met. 

A young man acquaintance of the author, who was 
wealthy, but who seemed to lack magnetism, and who 
gave not the slightest promise of ever acquiring the mes¬ 
meric art, spent four hundred dollars in lessons with a 
very prominent public operator, and learned absolutely 
nothing. He then paid fifty dollars to a younger and less 
prominent operator, with a further agreement to pay 
more if he succeeded; and, as a result, he became as 
effective and as powerful a hypnotist as either of his 
teachers. In a conversation, he assured us that the 
greater of these told him half, and no more, and that the 
other was willing to finish the course; yet he did not tell 
either teacher the method of the other. 

The number or proportion of those who may be hyp¬ 
notized is growing less, and we are doing all we can to 
assist in the diminution. There are many reasons why 
the condition of catalepsy should be avoided. It indi¬ 
cates ill health of the nervous system, and causes an in¬ 
crease of this malady, while standing in the way of its 
cure; and this is true whether the mind is fully overcome 
by such control, or is merely in a state of lapsed memory, 
which is the least of the mesmeric or cataleptic degrees. 
There can be no gratification in this yielding to the will 
of another. Even the clairvoyant power, which has 
been turned to good account in a few instances, is useful 
to the operator but not to the subject, as the latter 
knows nothing of what occurs in its exercise. 

Persons who are fully mastered by this influence, as 


40 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


well as those who come partly under its control, suffer 
from nervous weakness; although a few rare exceptions 
may be found among the fully equipped clairvoyants. 
There are hours of unrest in every day of life. Morning, 
following a refreshing natural sleep, is the only period 
of the day when the mind is free from hallucinations. 
As evening approaches and the darkness deepens the 
shadows along the road, vague fears startle the nerves, 
and a longing to be in the rooms within the house drives 
away all sense of pleasure in the scenes without. 

This condition of unrest and fear is experienced by 
those who have come under the influence of the operator, 
whether fully or partly; but is more annoying in cases 
where self-hypnotism has occurred. This peculiar afflic¬ 
tion should be first considered. It has been known for 
centuries that the optic nerve might be made the agent 
of mesmerizing the mind in a mechanical way; and in¬ 
vestigation has shown that the condition within the body, 
as to life-functions in their influence on the thoughts, as 
well as outer. 

t t 

T 7 V 

X % 

Self-hypnotism is mechanically produced through the 
optic nerve. 

This is the Seventh Principle. Few persons are aware 
of the fact that if they gaze at a small shining ball placed 
in front of the eyes slightly raised, the optic nerve will 
soon become tired and the mind will pass into a wrapt 
or ecstatic condition; and those whose nerves are ab¬ 
normal or morbid will become mesmerized, while the 
others will pass through a troubled slumber into natural 
waking. 

The mental and nervous conditions are morbid when 
they are diseased or disordered. This comes from phy- 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 41 


sical causes through illness that leaves the body weak and 
the nerves unsteady; or else through some interruption 
of the vital currents, as by misfortune, gloom, disappoint¬ 
ment, and insufficient nutrition. The brain and the 
nerves are associated; being alike in their ordinary activ¬ 
ities, and subject to the same laws of health and disease. 
Nervous excitement involves the brain before it does the 
body; and anything that startles or agitates the senses 
will derange the nervous system. Thus the scream of a 
child has caused a woman to drop a glass; the sight of 
a strange person, or of something that surprises or horri¬ 
fies, may take away all power of motion, or so weaken 
the nerves that the limbs tremble and the strength gives 
way. It is on this principle that the hearing of bad news 
will cause a collapse of the stomach and stop digestion. 

There are so many intricate problems involved in this 
connection that it is impossible to consider them all. 
Not a generation ago it was hard to find persons who be¬ 
lieved in the power of mesmerism; and still harder to find 
those who could be induced to accept the theory that the 
body was the slave of the mind; although the few in¬ 
vestigators of these subjects in every age had been ac¬ 
quainted with them from the beginning of history. The 
heart-beats, the pulsing blood, the flow of life along the 
nerves, the accumulation of power in the central batteries 
of the body, are urged to excess or drooped in weakness 
as the mind is buoyant or depressed. But what a shock 
of fear may accomplish in a mental way, the wearying 
of the eye may do in a mechanical. Yet something must 
exist beyond this. Lives are generally morbid. Habits 
make or mar the clearness of the mind and vital existence. 
Such a disease as superstition grows on a person and 
soon produces the morbid or abnormal state. 

A test of one’s condition is found in the use of self¬ 
hypnotism, for, if the mind and system are normal, noth¬ 
ing but natural sleep will ultimately result from them; 


42 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


but, if there is morbidity, the mesmeric state will follow. 
Despite the advantages of clairvoyance as attained 
through hypnotism, it must always be borne in mind that 
this condition is the result of a combination of hypnotic 
influence and morbid nerves. Even the better things 
hoped for in future discoveries must pass through the 
mud of this low channel. One excellent hypnotist said 
very frankly that the nearer a person came to insanity 
the better subject and clairvoyant was produced; and this 
highly morbid state was favorable to clear seeing in the 
sub-conscious realm; an almost contradictory statement. 
It ought to be true that, if there is an inner mind possess¬ 
ing supernatural powers, it should be the offspring of 
health and not disease. Yet it is said that no great 
genius has ever existed who was not mentally erratic. 
In some cases, the more eccentricity, the more genius. 

- It is not advisable to practice self-hypnotism. If your 
condition is normal, nothing will come out of it; if mor¬ 
bid, you will suffer from hallucinations. If you desire 
to become a clairvoyant, you must pass through the 
lowest stratum of the sane mind in order to accomplish 
this end. Here are some reasons offered by intelligent 
persons, for resorting to the practice of self-hypnotism. 
A man writes to us as follows: “I wish your opinion. 
I think I am right in my way of reasoning; but you can 
tell me whether I am or not. I have read the biographies 
of many men and women of genius; and the world re¬ 
garded them as eccentric. Take the idiotic careers of 
Goldsmith and Byron; were they sane! Study Napoleon 
and Alexander; were they sane! One author declares 
that all great men are out of their minds; that they show 
it in their way of living, and in their works. Another says 
no one is perfectly sane. My argument is this: If 
geniuses are insane to a degree, if geniuses possess the 
sub-conscious power of quick and clear seeing, if those, 
who out of ordinary life possess the same power, are also 


PBOTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 43 

of morbid mental condition, why is it not true that 
self-hypnotism will awaken the spirit of genius ? ’ ’ Here 
is an association of similar tendencies without proof to 
connect one with the other, or to resolve them back to 
a common cause. 

It is true that geniuses are endowed with something of 
the clear-seeing of clairvoyance; otherwise it is not pos¬ 
sible to account for the great memory of famous men and 
women. Edward Everett and others declare that Daniel 
Webster committed to memory the Bible, Shakespeare, 
Paradise Lost, and other works; but common minds 
doubt the statement as it seems impossible of belief. 
Actors quickly commit to memory the leading roles of 
long plays, and some have done this in a single day, al¬ 
though few persons off the stage will credit the assertion. 
We once knew a statesman and lawyer of national fame, 
of whom it was said that he had committed to memory 
most of Shakespeare and all of the Bible; and, as far as 
we could test the accuracy of the report, it seemed true, 
for he was willing to recite from these works ad libitum. 
If the sub-conscious faculty was not at work, we do not 
know how to account for the phenomenon. 

Another reason given for the development of self-hyp- 
notism is contained in the following letter: “I was bowed 
down with trouble. Night and day I prayed to get re¬ 
lease; but, not being sincerely repentant, I only suffered 
the more. I thought of mesmerizing myself, for I knew 
a friend who did so and forgot all her troubles. Do you 
advise it?” In our reply we cited the case of a woman 
who had read a highly sensational book and was unable 
to divert her mind from the realism associated with the 
doings of certain characters in the story, so mesmerized 
herself and was last known in an asylum. This seems not 
to have deterred the inquirer; for she followed in the 
same course and likewise entered an asylum. It is pos¬ 
sible that, in both instances, the mind was tottering; mak- 


44 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


ing both of them fit subjects of this influence. They did 
not become clairvoyants, although both might have done 
so had their reason not been dethroned. 

The principle involved in self-hypnotism is elsewhere 
stated. To develop the true condition the nervous system 
and mind must be morbid. We will first treat of the 
mechanical kind, wherein the optic nerve does the work. 
Some subsequent explanations will show why such sleep 
is caused in this method of procedure. We will say here 
that a sharp, fine point of light such as may be caught 
from the tiny reflection on a small, shiny ball, say about 
a half inch to an inch in diameter, will exhaust the mag¬ 
netism along the optic nerve from the eyeball to the 
juncture within the brain. Its influence goes no further 
than this. If the magnetism of the nerve cannot be sus¬ 
tained there is no vitality with which to keep it alive to 
use. A sensation of fear attends the loss of sight; the 
brain becomes tired in its sleep-acting functions; and, 
after a number of trials lasting from ten minutes to an 
hour each, for 5 or 10 days, a cataleptic sleep is produced. 

This sleep is mild and unnoticeable in any peculiarities, 
if the mind is normal; otherwise it is fully mesmeric, and 
needs some other person to act as operator or suggestor 
of action. To turn it to effect, the suggestions must be 
made under the methods stated in the pages following, 
which are devoted to that part of the matter. The 
terms used in this connection are here stated. 

Operator.—This is the man or woman who has charge 
of the hypnotic. The operator may induce sleep by 
manipulation, or by magnetism alone. 

Manipulation.—This consists of handling the person to 
be mesmerized. It depends primarily on magnetism, 
but aids it by rubbing the parts of the body as described 
in subsequent pages of this department. 

Free Hypnotism.—This is the putting to sleep without 
touching the body or any part of it. 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 45 


To Hypnotize. —This is the same as to mesmerize. 
Hypnotize is derived from the Greek word meaning 
sleep. It is not strictly correct, for all sleep is not ac¬ 
curately described by a single word. 

To Mesmerize. —This is the same as to hypnotize. Mes- 
mer, in the last century, called attention to the art by 
lectures and experiments; and his name was associated 
with it up to recent years when a new word was coined 
from the Greek; so that “mesmerism” is less frequently 
employed to-day than “hypnotism.” 

Subject. —This is the term applied to one who is sought 
to be controlled by a hypnotist. 

Hypnotic. —Any person who is, or may be hypnotized, 
whether by an operator or by self-processes. 

Catalepsy. —This is a sleep in which the senses and 
ordinary faculties are suspended, and the conscious mind 
is completely clouded. It is the same as hypnotic sleep. 

Sub-consciousness. —Erroneously spoken of the soul; 
but properly applied to that mental state which is re¬ 
vealed by the operator after a subject has been mesmer¬ 
ized to such an extent that there is no consciousness re¬ 
maining in the ordinary mind. 

Part-hypnotism. —This means that condition which is 
not involved in sleep, but where the person is overcome 
to a slight extent, or suffers a lapse of consciousness. 
Nearly all persons are thus influenced at times. 

Trance. —A supposed state of sub-consciousness; 
usually the pretence of advertising charlatans claiming 
to be mediums and clairvoyants; but, when genuine, it is 
the term applied to cataleptic sleep, otherwise called 
mesmerism. 

Clairvoyance. —The name of the sub-conscious faculty 
when it reads the thoughts of other persons, and sees 
objects and events, as though matter did not separate 
them from the senses. 

Spiritualism. —The erroneous claim that what cannot 


46 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


be understood or explained by the reasoning faculties 
must, therefore, be the work of spirits. It is the weak¬ 
est emanation of the human mind, and is on a par with 
the lowest order of mediaeval superstition. 

To Magnetize. —This meafis to add and arouse vitality 
in another person. It is the opposite of mesmerize, 
which depresses vitality and puts to sleep. 

Positive Personal Magnetism. —This is( used to in¬ 
crease the vitality of others, to arouse magnetism in 
them and to win them by enthusiasm or belief of an 
active nature. 

Negative Magnetism. —This is used to depress or 
drive out the little magnetism possessed by a mesmeric 
subject so that all attempts at resistance may fail. 



Hallucinations, due to hypnotic conditions, are de¬ 
stroyed by magnetism. 

This is the Eighth Principle. It is of importance be¬ 
cause there are not five persons in a hundred that are 
not prey at times to these abnormal conditions of the 
mind or nervous system. It might be said that all men 
and women and most children have had hallucinations 
at some period or other in the past; though perhaps 
but for a moment. 

In natural consciousness we possess five senses. Of 
these, sight is most readily disturbed by temporary hyp¬ 
notism, which does not put to sleep, but takes us away 
from full self-control for a minute or two at a time. 
What is called 4 ‘part hypnotism” differs from the 
temporary influence in that it holds the mind in partial 
sway but does not cause sleep. It is preceded or ac¬ 
companied by depression. Hallucinations come in such 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 47 


moods. No magnetic person has them, unless there has 
been a temporary suspension of the vitality. As a rule 
all highly magnetic individuals are free from influences 
that tend to depress. 

As hypnotic conditions are always associated with 
morbid states of the mind and nerves, and these are due 
to physical illness or mental affection of some kind or 
other, it would not be possible to consider them apart. 
A man is less likely to be harrassed by hallucinations 
than a woman; she is more likely in her depressed part 
of the month than at other times. Some women declare 
that they are never free from morbid tendencies at such 
times. Of course the mesmerist has more success in 
throwing them into the cataleptic sleep in these periods, 
and the fact is known to them. But our duty in this 
connection is to consider the mental afflictions first. 

From this line of testimony we find that some women 
have periodic hallucinations, varying in kind; while 
others have the same sort of troubles at regular times; 
and still others are affected without regularity. One 
woman describes her trouble in this language: “Noth¬ 
ing can be so annoying as the coming on of these sights 
at such times; I look down when I walk, for there is 
always sure to be a face ahead looking at me, and I 
avoid it if I do not raise my eyes.” She then says that 
the faces “are never two alike; nor are there more than 
one each month.” She never sees a pleasant face; once 
it is a child suffering pain; again it is a man with 
bandaged head; or a woman with chin contorted; and 
the strangest face of all was that of an old lady which 
seemed to be “lying on a pillow gazing at me; if I 
looked down I could not see it, if I looked up there it was 
as plain as day.” The cure of this morbid trouble was 
completed solely by the studies of magnetism in the 
highest exercises obtainable. 

The mere reading of the causes and operations of hyp- 


48 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


notism has saved many a mind. It is said to be im¬ 
possible to hypnotize a person who has once read or 
been told how it is done, for the means whereby belief 
may be captured are forever destroyed. In a number of 
instances we have known'of the cure of hallucinations 
by merely reading of the story and laws which are in¬ 
volved in their origin; for, the foundation fear being 
gone, it is no longer possible to depress the mind and 
nerves. To read and to know is generally a great help 
in regulating the mental functions. A comet once 
caused the world to fall on its knees and tremble; now 
that the people know something of the nature of the 
comet, they cease to be awed by fear. The same law 
holds true in hypnotism; it is generally the fear that the 
operator has the power to obtain control, that yields 
it. So in hallucinations; when the real cause of them is 
known the terror is gone. 

To illustrate the effect of reading alone of the way 
such morbid troubles originate and are overcome, we 
cite the following instance: A woman writes, and sus¬ 
tains her claim by other evidence: “At this period every 
time I started to go from the house I saw a form, half 
man and half dragon, crouching just around the corner, 
leaning its head and part of its body forward, looking 
at me. Its eyes were torn open and horrible in their 
gaze. You can imagine my feelings when I first wit¬ 
nessed it. I screamed and went back into the house, 
telling the folks that there was a man demon around the 
corner. They went our cautiously, saw nothing, came 
back and looked pityingly at me. I realized it all. A 
month passed, and I had the same experience. I felt 
that my reason was being dethroned. This continued 
till I received your explanation of the cause; and I in¬ 
stantly got relief. It is a fact that the knowledge of the 
cause was sufficient to release me from this bondage. I 
then knew it was not trouble of the mind, but depression 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 49 


and fear that increased the influence over me.” Two 
important facts are educed from this case. In the first, 
we see that she suffered from a recurrence of the same 
hallucination; in the second, she cured herself by knowl¬ 
edge which drove away fear. 

A man who had failed in business became so depressed 
that he suffered from hallucinations of the most hor¬ 
rible kind. They came upon him at all hours of the day 
or night, waking or sleeping; but they were not con¬ 
stant visitors. He went for days without seeing any; 
and rarely saw more than one in twenty-four hours. 
This made him believe that it was worry and not mental 
disease that was the cause of it; but still had enough 
doubt about it to be depressed and fearful. He says: “I 
fought this horror as bravely as I could. I did not 
succeed in drowning it, and I write to say that if I do not 
get some relief I shall put a revolver to my temple and 
blow my brains out. That may relieve me and kill the 
devils.’’ No doctor living would have refused to certify 
that the man was mentally deranged. Yet he was not. 
Many a person has gone to the asylum, or to the sui¬ 
cide’s grave, who might easily have been rescued. Re¬ 
move fear from half the candidates for insane wards, 
and full reason would be restored. 

The foregoing case is typical and should be considered 
more fully. The man’s first hallucination was that of a 
widow with her child, lying bleeding at his feet. He 
was about to step aside, when a mass of clothing rolled 
over, pale arms came out of a bundle of white, and bony 
fingers almost clutched his hands,—all causing him to 
shrink suddenly. His wife, who was walking with him, 
saw his actions and tried to pacify him. In a few sec¬ 
onds all had disappeared. He rubbed his wife’s hands 
and asked if she was at his side, although he was looking 
straight down into her eyes. She said that his pupils 
seemed to be dilated and his gaze wild and weird. 


50 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


Later on in the week he opened a closet door and 
thought he saw a skeleton, which toppled toward him, 
raised its arms to clutch his neck, and disappeared as 
he shrunk back to avoid it. He shut the door, said 
nothing to his wife, and had never opened it again up 
to the time our attention was called to the case. His 
purpose was expressed as follows: “I will not tell any 
member of my family what I suffer unless they are with 
me; but some morning I will be found free from it all.” 
He then goes on to relate the worst of all his hallucina¬ 
tions: “I was sitting in the front room reading. I 
would not spend another evening in the sitting-room 
where that closet-door is. My wife crept in, always 
speaking before she entered, so as not to startle me. She 
sat at the table opposite me, her face partly toward 
mine. I heard a rustling at the window, then a scratch¬ 
ing sound. I was afraid to look up. It was a warm eve¬ 
ning, and the top of the window was down. The shade 
would every now and then blow out as though the wind 
lifted it. Soon a pair of hands appeared, one on each 
side of the shade, extending into the room and shaking 
about, while the fingers wriggled and snapped. I 
laughed to myself, and looked down. Then I heard dis¬ 
tinctly the throaty sounds of a man trying to attract my 
attention by exclaiming ‘ahem!’ very loudly. I looked 
to my wife. She heard nothing. The sound came louder 
than before. I looked up. The long arms had lifted the 
shade clear to the ceiling, and under it, leaning over the 
top of the sash, was the unshaved face of a hideous 
tramp, with eyes running streams of blood. He raised 
one knee as if to climb over the window and spring 
into the room. I threw my book at him and ran away. 
My wife found me on the bed upstairs, my face buried 
in the pillows.” We could not refuse to act in his be¬ 
half. He thought himself insane, and his wife thought 
so; but he had yet time. This art saved him. 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 51 


The probable cause of these hallucinations was the op¬ 
pression of his creditors. It is a fact that some minds are 
sensitive to evil influences, or malign dispositions. This 
is seen in the case of a young man who, on a certain eve¬ 
ning, felt that somebody was plotting to do him injury. 
The feeling was so keen and clear that he stated the mat¬ 
ter to his elder brother, saying, “I am to have trouble. 
Who can be at work against me!” They made a note in 
writing of the time to a minute. Subsequent events veri¬ 
fied the belief. A secret meeting was held at the hour 
and malice predominated. In the case of the man who 
had failed in business, it seems that on or about the time 
when he experienced his most horrible vision, his credi¬ 
tors were in conclave seeking to get evidence, or plan 
proceedings to arrest him for fraud. 

The first step in such a case was to explain fully the 
cause and the operation of self-hypnotism produced by 
fear. We wrote frankly: “You have probably done 
wrong in some part of your failure, and are looking at 
every turn for the sheriff to enter and take you into 
custody. This fear has hypnotized you. ” We explained 
fully the process whereby apprehension would drive a 
person into a part mesmeric condition. In the instance 
cited, the mere knowledge did not effect a complete cure; 
it expelled the rougher hallucinations, which seemed to 
satisfy him. He then took up the study of magnetism, 
and, a few months later, when the crisis came, he met it 
manfully, settled with his creditors, was allowed a liberal 
reduction, and gained their confidence to such an extent 
that he resumed business, and is to-day prosperous. He 
now writes: “I am not afraid of closet-doors or win¬ 
dows. Your work of magnetism is worth a hundred 
thousand dollars to me. You know that I am sincere, 
because I have brought you many converts. It is true 
that no doctor, no asylum, no treatment of any kind, ex¬ 
cept magnetism of the higher estates could have rescued 


52 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


him from insanity and suicide. A fact of so much value 
as this cannot be escaped or passed lightly by. The man 
in question believes in this method sincerely, for he sees 
that other persons who meed just such help as magne¬ 
tism are induced to get it in time to save disaster. 

A certain business man had became overwhelmed by 
success. He made money so fast that he could not attend 
to the thousand cares that were multiplied thereby. From 
morning, at the earliest hour, to the dragging period of 
midnight, he fought away at the intricate problems; until 
at last the nutrition that fed his brain and nerves gave 
out. These little ministers of life cried night and day for 
sustenance which he could not give, for his thoughts and 
plans were too intensely strong to admit of cessation. He 
could not sleep. The newspapers, which serve to sug¬ 
gest every horrifying idea that will hypnotize weakened 
minds, published the picture of a business man who, 
under similar circumstances, went to the bath-room at 
two o ’clock in the morning, and blew out his brains. This 
was the final straw. In a state of hypnotism, he arose 
from the side of his wife and proceeded to do the same 
thing. She heard him as he stole out of the room, fol¬ 
lowed him, and caught his arm, just as the revolver dis¬ 
charged, and swerved it from its aim. The shock of the 
sound aroused him from his hypnotic mood, just as any 
quick, sharp noise may awaken one who is in a light 
cataleptic slumber. Could suicides miss the first shot, it 
is likely that they would not fire the second. 



A person many be self-hypnotized and greatly injured 
by the operation of fear. 

This is the Ninth Principle. There are various kinds 
of fear. The most common is that of misfortune and 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 53 


poverty. It has sent millions to an untimely grave. The 
usual fear of the mediaeval ages is no longer universal; 
it was the continual apprehension of murder. Then no 
human life was safe; and those who retired at night 
were in doubt of rising in the morning. 

Later on this feeling of insecurity changed to that of 
assault or attack. But this kind of fear is rare, except 
in Kentucky among the mountaineers, and on the border¬ 
lines of civilization where the far West blends into the 
population of the Pacific slope. Fear of bodily harm 
is not common at this date where laws are respected and 
enforced. When one kind of apprehension gives way an¬ 
other takes its place, and the mind is kept busy extricat¬ 
ing itself from its moods. In this age the fear that the 
means of living will be taken away, is probably para¬ 
mount to all other mental depressions. This was not so 
when people got their full sustenance and support from 
the land,—nor would it be so if the acres that are prosti¬ 
tuted to waste were made the basis of human supply as 
they did in the wealthy colonial days. 

Conscience is the cause of fear to a much larger extent 
than is believed. Not only as a moral influence, but in 
its alarms that portend danger to reputation or liberty, 
it drives the good man and the bad man on to the reefs 
of wreck and misery. The desperate criminal is an ani¬ 
mal, not a human being; and animals sutler neither re¬ 
morse nor regret. To rise to the plane of humanity, a 
felon must either fear or command by the possession of 
a supreme magnetism which knows no fear; and in the 
latter case he would be too honest a man to commit crime. 
The acquisition of magnetism is directly opposite the 
tendency which makes wrongdoing easy. 

Most crimes are committed under hypnotic conditions, 
and the prevention is to be had more frequently in the 
prior training than at the moment of the offence. Ab¬ 
solute certainty of apprehension and punishment will 


54 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


deter all persons who are sane, and nearly all who are 
insane, as we shall see in later pages. But there is doubt 
of being punished and thus the man is lost. In a sub¬ 
sequent realm of this volume, the conditions of hypnotic 
influence will be considered fully, and perhaps some new 
light may be gathered on the question of criminal re¬ 
sponsibility. The dazed condition and the animal nature 
that seems to invite it, are entitled to examination. We 
now have the direct laws of this art before us. 



Hypnotism puts to sleep the conscious will and awak¬ 
ens a morbid condition of the sub-conscious faculty. 

This is the Tenth Principle. The science and art of 
mesmerizing, which word is being displaced by the older 
term hypnotizing, have been known in one form or an¬ 
other, generally crudely, for several thousand years. 
Briefly stated, the effect of the practice is to shut off or 
put to sleep the conscious or regular faculty of the brain, 
and open up the sub-conscious or intuitive faculty. 

The absence of any really scientific laws on the sub¬ 
ject, the belief that the practice was quackery, the limita¬ 
tion of it to certain undesirable uses, the confining of the 
power of hypnotizing to persons of generally low stand¬ 
ing, and the fact that the brightest minds failed to 
acquire the art while the dullest succeeded, all conspired 
to make it an undignified if not a disreputable profession; 
and it drifted away from its true base to such an extent 
that few works of authority are obtainable on the subject, 
while the world of sensational literature is crowded with 
its extravagances. Even at this day the public are con¬ 
sidered gullible, if we may judge from the advertisements 
that appear in magazines and periodicals, seeking pur¬ 
chasers of books and courses of study on mesmerism, 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 55 


hypnotism, personal magnetism and other similar mat¬ 
ters. 

That the art was practiced thousands of years ago, is 
known to any close student of history or of the Bible. No 
nation was exempt from the practice. The credulity of 
the masses was such that, aided by a prevailing super¬ 
stitious fear, they quickly accorded to any man who could 
wield the power, the rank of healer, doctor, priest or 
almost anything he sought. Humanity does not change 
in forty centuries so that one age would differ materially 
from another in this regard; and it is not only reasonable, 
but certain, that the hypnotist had his favorite subject 
always attending him to give evidence of thought-read¬ 
ing, clairvoyance, warnings, predictions, and the like. 

The lowest types of minds have been successful as hyp¬ 
notists more often than those above the average. It 
seems to have cropped out by accident, and to have as 
much surprised the operator as anyone else. Indolent 
men and lazy hags in the days of witchcraft fell into the 
practice as though by natural endowment; and the popu¬ 
lar fear of the black art helped to make victims in great 
numbers. As most persons, to some extent at least, may 
be hypnotized; and, as those who produce the influence 
are not always able to undo its effects; the result is de¬ 
moralizing, and must have been seriously so in the dark 
ages. 

When persons are saturated with fear, even the half- 
qualified witches, as they were then called, could produce 
sensations akin to the possession of devils and all the 
hallucinations that fell upon the lives of those who were 
bewitched. As there was a firm belief in the existence 
and power of the witches, and as the evidence produced 
at trials was conclusive of their work though not always 
of their identity, we must regard the practice as an es¬ 
tablished fact. To laugh at the errors of belief is not 
in our province. Only ignorance doubts the history of 


56 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


the facts. t Ve know it was wrong to put sorcerers to 
death; just as it would be wrong to-day to execute hyp¬ 
notists. They are one and the same. 

To put a person into mesmeric sleep, it is necessary to 
catch his belief, and this is obtained in one of two ways, 
either by willing consent or by inspiring fear. As the 
reasoning faculties are eliminating superstition, that 
greatest of all hypnotizing influences, the opportunity for 
bewitching large numbers is much less now than in 
former ages. In 1793, when the last witch of the world 
was officially put to death at Posen, the better judgment 
of mankind had come to see that the so-called witchcraft 
was the fault of those influenced rather than of those who 
wielded the strange power; for, twenty years earlier, in 
1773, Dr. Mesmer gave to Europe the results of certain 
experiments that coincided with the work of sorcery. 

A person may be a witch and not know it until some 
other person makes the fact apparent. The word witch is 
applied to both man and woman; but generally to woman, 
from the fact that the German tribes for nearly two thou¬ 
sand years gave over to their women the profession of 
healing by laying on of hands, by mysterious herbs and 
peculiar ceremonies, that may or may not have been akin 
to hypnotism. The male-witch was sometimes called a 
wizard, though not generally. It was a belief in England 
and Germany that out of every one hundred witches one 
was a wizard and ninety-nine were hags. From evidence 
of the nature of their work as compared with that now at 
hand, it is clear that witchcraft was hypnotism, that the 
subjects were easily bewitched because of the credulous 
condition of their minds in those ages that were darkened 
by superstition, and that the witches were blameless in 
most cases, for the reason that the power is generally 
possessed before the owner knows it. 

Both sides of this matter may receive light from the fol¬ 
lowing experiences which have been verified, as stated. 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 57 


and corroborated by other similar cases. We cite the 
simplest of them, as they show the principle clearly 
enough. A woman makes the following statement: “I 
am not a clairvoyant, nor do I know anything of it, one 
way or the other. I am ignorant of hypnotism. A year 
or more ago I was visiting a friend for a few weeks. 
She was neither a clairvoyant nor hypnotist, and had no 
interest in anything of the kind. I found her one day 
looking so steadily at my eyes that I was frightened, but 
she seemed more afraid than I was. I did not dare look 
at her; but at times did so briefly as one looks or glances 
at others. In each instance she seemed to lose control 
of herself. I cut my visit short and came home. A few 
days later I received a letter stating that she was under 
my influence, and describing her condition .’ 9 As advice 
was asked for in both cases, we directed the unfortunate 
subject to take up the study of personal magnetism 
which invariably cuts off all hypnotic power. In the case 
of the woman, who so suddenly found herself thus quali¬ 
fied to influence others, we advised a study of this higher 
course, whereby she became enabled to withdraw her 
control at will. 

A subject of the same woman two years later sent a 
very vivid description of the first influence exerted over; 
for it seems that the hypnotist, finding herself with the 
power, chose to use it occasionally, and we have since 
learned of eight instances in which she controlled others, 
two of them men. The case referred to was that of one 
who, like the first, was influenced without the intention 

of the operator. She writes: “I thought Mrs. -’s 

eyes seemed brilliant, one more than the other. This 
caused me to look at the brighter one at every chance 
I got, even when she was not looking at me. When she 
did look, I felt myself getting restless, and my eyes rolled. 
I was conscious of becoming drowsy, and then fell 
asleep.” After this description she goes on to relate 


58 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


some hallucinations that frightened her; one of which 
was the fear that she was losing her mind. In another 
case the subject, after being freed from sleep, saw dark 
birds in every corner of the room. 

So common have been such experiences that it is waste 
time to enumerate more. The study of witchcraft shows 
exactly the same conditions; but it must be remembered 
that the subjects in those days were all, or nearly all, 
affected by some phase of religion. The belief in a per¬ 
sonal God, a personal devil, and angels good and bad, led 
to the further idea that there was a malignant spirit 
abroad empowered with the right to cause misery and 
disease. Men, women and children often hypnotized 
themselves with the infatuation that they contained 
devils, as did the people of old Palestine; and, being 
under the control of this belief, they did then just what 
would be done now under the same conditions; they 
acted as if devils were in them. 

Although too horrible for the ordinary experiments of 
modern practice, some hypnotists, desiring to show the 
resemblance of witchcraft to hypnotism, have made the 
suggestion of “having devils’’ to their subjects, with 
the results as expected; and everything that was asso¬ 
ciated with the old days of witchery may be brought 
out. It must be remembered that self-hypnotism has 
always existed; that a person may come under influence 
without the effort or even the knowledge of the one who 
owns the power, and that readiness of belief is the strong¬ 
est known stimulant to this end. Doubting minds are 
rarely ever affected. In the study of ignorance it is 
found that belief is more absolute, and more easily 
captured, in proportion as the intelligence is low. 

The hypnotic experience, formerly known as witchcraft, 
can be followed or traced through the centuries from the 
dawn of history; but it burst forth in the fifteenth 
century as a mania, no doubt receiving its impetus from 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 59 


the edict of Pope Innocent VIII, in 1484, charging the 
Inquisition to hunt up and put to death all witches and 
sorcerers. As Germany had been the birthplace of the 
medicine women, or “healers ,’ 9 the papal bull was in¬ 
tended primarily for them; and two zealots of that 
country, in 1489, drew up the famous “ Witch-Hammer, 5 ’ 
in which you may find the whole doctrine of witchcraft 
set forth in systematic form, and rules set down for the 
detection and trial of the crime. These rules afterward 
became a sort of authority, and were believed in for a 
long time after their authors, Kraemer and Sprenger, 
were dead; although they are ridiculous at the present 
period. 

Other edicts followed and produced untold misery. It 
seems strange that the heads of the Christian church, 
the representatives of the best prevailing education 
should originate this suffering. In 1494, Pope Alexander 
VI; in 1521, Pope Leo X, and in 1522, Pope Adrian VI 
issued bulls to the same effect. In Bamberg, 600 persons 
were burned or hanged for sorcery in four years; in 
Wurzburg, 900 were executed; in Geneva, in the year 
1516, 500 persons were burned in four months; and over 
1,000 in Como district in 1524; all for this one cause. In 
England, in 1562, the statute of Elizabeth made witch¬ 
craft a capital crime, whether it was practiced to the in¬ 
jury of another or not. These laws implied that those 
who possessed the power were able to control it. In the 
reign of James VI, of England, following the dawn of 
that splendid renaissance, the frenzy burst out in its full 
fury. The king wrote a treatise on the subject, and his 
“witch-finders” went forth to scour the land for the 
offenders. 

In enlightened England during the Long Parliament, 
fully 3,000 persons were put to death because of witch¬ 
craft. The mania appeared in America, the Salem trage¬ 
dies of 1691, ’92 being the culmination here. As the peo- 


60 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


pie believed in the reality of the sorcery, and attributed 
their misfortunes to these maligned persons, it became an 
easy matter to hasten their arrest and execution by the 
concoction of lies without limit. No more picturesque 
and highly illuminated falsehoods have ever been in¬ 
vented, than those which surrounded the witches of the 
seventeenth century; and few persons were guiltless of 
this malice. 

Times have changed. When the renaissance arose with 
its promise of better light, the dark clouds of supersti¬ 
tion would not dissolve till they had shadowed a majority 
of the homes of England with the gaunt figure of death, 
either for creed, sorcery or politics; and, were it not 
for the fact that all persons must die sooner or later, the 
wide swath cut by fanaticism must have materially re¬ 
duced the population of that country. But times have 
changed. What was then witchcraft is now hypnotism. 
The art that held religious devotees, including potentates, 
under the sway of self-appointed leaders in other ages 
and climes, and that wrought such havoc in the shifting 
centuries of a later era, is now recognized as a reality in 
modern science, possessing some qualities that entitle it 
to careful investigation. It has long enough been han¬ 
dled by charlatans in lectures and treatises of a highly 
sensational character; and it is now time for the facts. 

Animals other than man may be hypnotized, although 
they are not reasoning beings capable of holding a fixed 
belief. Yet their minds do, in fact, adhere to ideas; and 
all animal training proceeds on this basis. It seems that 
some fear, or some fancy, is aroused by a small shining 
spot, especially if it is set in surroundings different from 
itself. That which will excite attention in a human being 
is known to do the same in animals; with the exception 
that it is harder to hold the brain of the latter. A bird 
sees the glitter in the eye of the snake, or of the cat; at 
first watches it out of curiosity; then becomes dazed, 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 61 


and is caught. A small shining ball will rivet the atten¬ 
tion, but it lacks the depth and peculiar scintillation of 
the live eye, and, consequently, it requires more time to 
produce stupor. 

Many persons have gone into mesmeric sleep, induced 
wholly by a small, bright object. Birds can sometimes be 
made stupid in the same way, though the fascination is 
lacking. When you enter a dark room in which a cat 
is seen only by the two shining orbs, a peculiar phosphor¬ 
escence dances before you. In the light this changes to 
green and gold. You watch the dancing streams of the 
aurora in the cold northern skies, and they hold your 
attention. What you may find in the glitter of a tiny 
ball is intensified by the coloring and swinging of little 
masses of light that are strange enough to cause you to 
wonder at them. No wonder the bird looks till the will 
is paralyzed. 

Some writers go so far as to claim that the mesmeric 
power is a kind provision of nature, intended to lessen 
pain and fear when the animal of prey seizes its victim. 
Some testimony has come from persons who have been 
rescued from the jaws of beasts after losing conscious¬ 
ness. Of course it is understood that humanity is not 
intended by nature as food for animals; but the general 
law covers all life, and suits each individual case. From 
private and published accounts, some facts come to us 
that seem to corroborate this theory. In the attempt to 
find a reason for the existence of everything good and 
bad in this world, it has been suggested that hypnotism 
is a condition of painlessness established to release the 
prey from all suffering; and, being a general provision, 
all animal life is affected by it. This cannot be the only 
use of the condition. Most gifts of nature have two or 
more uses. 

In getting testimony from the prey themselves, we may 
look to dumb creation first. A mouse taken from a cat 


62 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


was uninjured and free from bruise as nearly as could 
be ascertained. Although it ran about when in the 
power of the cat, it gave no evidence of suffering. The 
bird flies about the head of the snake, making its circles 
smaller, and goes peacefully to its doom as though to die 
were pleasanter than living. The lamb shows no sign of 
suffering when the hot breath of its slayer is upon it. 
A large wolf carried a ewe nearly a mile as tenderly as 
the mother cat carries her kitten; and was shot just in 
the act of plunging its teeth into the lamb’s throat. The 
latter had no bruise whatever, nor did it give evidence 
of pain. It seemed dazed for quite a while, as though 
some influence still overawed it; as does a human subject 
whom the hypnotist fails to release from the spell. 

A child was carried by the clothing in the teeth of a 
bear to the place where the savage beast intended to 
make a feast on its life. A hunter lay in wait at the 
spot and by a good aim slew the bear without harming 
the child. The latter who was six years old gave an ac¬ 
curate account of its feelings when it saw the animal 
coming toward it; showing great horror at first, then 
a light from two big balls of fire, and finally a sleepy 
condition. It seemed to regard the journey in the clutches 
of the bear as a dream; and said it was not a bit fright¬ 
ened till the gun was fired, then the sleep changed to 
wakefulness and fear. 

In another case a child eight years old was caught up 
by the shoulder and held in the jaws of a bear for some 
minutes before it was rescued; and, although the flesh 
was badly torn, there was no pain at the time the teeth 
went in, nor until the wounds were being dressed. Hunt¬ 
ers in the jungle have told many experiences that cor¬ 
roborate this law of relief from pain. One incident is 
as good as a hundred where the same thing is repeated. 
A man missed in his aim at the vital region of a lion and 
was seized and carried to the lair, where the young cubs 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 63 


were given a lesson in dining on human flesh; much in the 
same way as the mother dog yields some of her food to 
her young. He felt them devouring his legs from the 
hips down to the knees, and the old lion had commenced 
to bite out a chunk from his shoulder when a party of 
hunters came up in time to kill the animals. The un¬ 
fortunate man lived four days, and stated that he felt 
no pain whatever from the time he was seized to the 
time he was brought away from the scene. 

This arid numerous other incidents confirm what has 
been well said by writers, that when the beast of prey 
seizes its victim the latter is thrown into a state of hyp¬ 
notism and suffers no pain. On the other hand it experi¬ 
ences a dreamy, happy feeling that causes the tragedy 
of nature to lose all its sting. This should be so. It is 
ordained that one life shall eat another, and the torture 
and cruelty should be considered sufficient in the fact 
and constant fear of such disaster, without adding the ex¬ 
cruciating suffering of tearing flesh and nerves asunder, 
while the act is in progress. Why life should devour life 
is not within the province of this book to consider. It 
seems that no species escapes this fate at times. Even 
the toughest have been slaughtered for food. 



On© person may be hypnotized by another without the 
latter’s aid or knowledge. 

This is the Eleventh Principle. The brain of man is 
curiously divided into parts that think for reasoning pur¬ 
poses, parts that think for mere muscular uses, and parts 
that think for functional action. These are somewhat 
dependent upon each other. They constitute the regular 
Work of life; deal with plans, with action, with organic 


64 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


operations; and cooperate with the senses. Where 
such brain divisions are located is known to a slight ex¬ 
tent only, except in a general way. 

Beyond the conscious brain above described, somewhere 
within it, or concealed in the body, is another faculty 
that cannot be so easily discussed; and, although the 
regular brain involves great problems in itself, this em¬ 
braces others far more stupendous. Many things are 
known about it, but there is yet much to learn. It is 
agreed by those scientists who have been able to reach a 
satisfactory conclusion on some points, that the sub¬ 
conscious brain attends regularly to its duties night and 
day without need of rest, that it does so without the 
knowledge of the regular brain, and in a realm ex¬ 
clusively its own. One other point, and the most im¬ 
portant to which they agree, is that the sub-conscious 
brain comes to the front as soon as the regular brain is 
hypnotized. 

From a close observation of experiments it seems that 
the inner brain is always at work and always conscious 
of itself; but that the only time it has any connection or 
cooperation with the outer brain is when intuition is 
strong, as in catching some scent of danger, some thought 
from another, or some idea out of the vast realm of 
knowledge as by inspiration. It seems willing to allow 
the outer brain to have full sway in its associations with 
the details of this life, and is apparently making pro¬ 
visions for something beyond. These are surmises, drawn 
from the fact that the inner brain works so quietly and 
untiringly. 

When the conscious brain is put to sleep by a process 
that keeps the body awake, the sub-conscious faculty, 
which is the so-called inner brain, at once asserts itself 
and stands ready to obey any suggestions that may be 
given it. This kind of sleep is induced in a number of 
ways, as we shall show; and one of the most common 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 65 


is that which proceeds from the unintended influence of 
another individual. An instance has been known of a 
boy fourteen years of age being hypnotized by a cat; 
another of a girl of fifteen falling asleep whenever she 
watched the eyes of a parrot; and most cases of the cata¬ 
leptic order have their origin in some kind of uninten¬ 
tional hypnotism. 

Self-mesmerism is different from this just described. 
It is caused from within by fear or some other agency 
which absorbs the belief, annihilates the will and opens 
up the sub-conscious faculty. In cases under the present 
principle, the sleep may be partly aided by some inward 
influence, but it is really induced by the unintended power 
of an individual, who may be unaware of it. Many 
persons have exerted some such control as much to their 
surprise as to others. A young lady entered the room 
where a dozen or fifteen persons were present, and was 
instantly seized with a peculiar sensation which she 
avoided by going to the next room. She stated the cir¬ 
cumstance to a friend, and they resolved to ascertain the 
cause. 

After passing in and out several times she located the 
person who held this control over her; a young man who 
really was innocent of any intention in the matter. 
They had never met before, nor was there any recognition 
when she first entered the room. It seems that he was 
gazing fixedly at a picture that hung by the side of the 
entrance, and the light of the room was reflected in a 
peculiar manner from his eyeballs. This caught her 
gaze and she was compelled to retire from it. It was a 
mere stimulus, however, to the effect; for the young man 
was in reality an embryo hypnotist and did not know it; 
nor did he understand the art in any way. Other cases 
of unintended and unwilling control are known; and it is 
probable that partial influence is exerted in thousands 
of cases every day where neither party is conscious of 


66 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


the fact. They experience the condition and account 
for it as due to a headache or some bit of indigestion. 



Magnetism must be absent in the person hypnotized. 

This is the Twelfth Principle. It has been claimed that 
the hypnotic state is induced by animal magnetism. This 
is not true, except in so far as magnetism is the determin¬ 
ing force which gives one person the power at that junc¬ 
ture when thought-waves have neutralized each other. 
This point should be clearly understood, as it is the key 
to the whole matter; and what is said here should be 
considered in connection with the next of our prin¬ 
ciples. 

Under nearly all circumstances most persons possess 
magnetism; and what is said throughout this work ex¬ 
plains the meaning of this statement. There are times 
when magnetism runs low or ebbs away, and life seems 
weak. The muscles may have some strength, and the 
vegetable functions, as of respiration, circulation and 
digestion, may continue their work; but nervous life and 
thought seem suspended. When these conditions are 
mild they are called lapses, and are brief in point of time. 
When they are severe they resemble, or pass into, cata¬ 
lepsy; which is a complete absence of magnetism or 
nervous vitality. 

In the cataleptic condition there is a suspension of 
mind, memory and will. The face retains whatever ex¬ 
pression may be on it at the time; if a smile, that lasts 
through the whole period; if a look of pain, the same re¬ 
mains to the end. The muscles are likewise fixed; if an 
arm be raised it will stay where put; a limb will assume 
and hold any attitude given it; and the whole body re- 


PEOTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 67 


sponds to any change willingly and makes no motion of 
its own. Pain is not felt. The arm may he cut off with¬ 
out suffering. This is the true cataleptic condition. It 
is akin to hypnotic sleep, except that in the latter state 
the sub-conscious mind awakens and governs the body 
not of its volition but by suggestion from another. 

Physicians see no real difference between catalepsy and 
mesmeric sleep, except in the fact that the sub-conscious 
faculty may be awakened in the latter. It is true that 
some hypnotists fail to arouse their subjects and thus 
leave them in catalepsy, from which they are released 
with some difficulty, and always with more or less injury. 
The genuine trance mediums, of which there are but few 
in the world, pass into this condition; and occasionally 
seem dead to all appearances as far as the uses of the 
body and mind are concerned; the only physical life be¬ 
ing in the vegetable functions of respiration, circulation 
and digestion, and the only mental existence being in the 
sub-conscious faculty. It is not true that catalepsy de¬ 
velops the trance-medium, or the hypnotic subject; but 
it is true that a trance-state and hypnotism result in 
catalepsy. 

This supposed disease is associated with every kind of 
revelation or supernatural sight into things, realms, and 
worlds that cannot he penetrated by the perception of the 
ordinary mind. When the evidence is entirely lacking no 
one is able to say what was the condition of a person 
at the time of some special exercise of this extraordinary 
power; so the result is accepted without comment. But 
where all the attendant facts are known there is never 
an exception to the statement that catalepsy always ac¬ 
companies the revelation. One explanation accounts for 
it by the assertion that the conscious mind is the agent 
of the senses and their memory; acting for them in the 
relation of the body to the earth; while the sub-conscious 
mind is directly employed in the service of the soul. How 


68 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


much of this is true need not be considered at this time. 

There is one personage in history of whom enough is 
known to show the nature of the results that may come 
from the cataleptic condition. We refer to Mohammed, 
the founder of the religion bearing his name. There are 
two classes of critics among Christian scholars. While 
both classes believe him to be wrong, and his millions 
of devotees to be misguided, one great division of the best 
students of the man and his work assert that he himself 
was honest; and the other division assert that he was a 
mere pretender. There is sufficient reliable authority to 
prove that he was constantly subject to fits and spasms 
of epilepsy. Any history, however large or small, admits 
this fact, and it is considered to be as completely estab¬ 
lished as is the fact that he conquered his own residence 
city. 

In a cave in Mount Hara near Mecca he constantly 
retired for meditation, commencing at about the age of 
thirty-five. Here he spent hours and days in religious 
contemplation. At the age of forty, while in epileptic 
fits, he received the first of his revelations which were 
ultimately printed as the Koran. His own honesty could 
hardly be doubted, when his wife was the first of his con¬ 
verts. Pretenders begin elsewhere than at home. In his 
own city of Mecca he counted 40,000 fervent believers 
prior to his death; so that if he deceived men, it must 
have been those who were closest to him and knew him 
best. In our opinion he was not a pretender; but this 
does not admit that he was not the honest dupe of his own 
fancies. / 

The genuine products of a cataleptic condition may be 
as wrong as the genuine products of honest but erroneous 
reasoning. One thing is true; the sub-conscious faculty 
performs wonders, and there is yet no evidence that it 
may not perform tricks. The case of Mohammed was un¬ 
doubtedly that of a genuine trance-medium; and it may 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 69 


have been much more. In an age when fraud and pre¬ 
tence are prevalent, and the public has been deceived 
numberless times by so-called trance-mediums, it is well 
to calmly contemplate the history of one who is above 
the charge of charlatanism; for, as Prof. James, of Har¬ 
vard University, said of Mrs. Piper, of Arlington Heights, 
Boston, if there were but one white sheep in a hundred it 
would prove that all sheep are not black. This woman 
was studied and investigated by the English and Ameri¬ 
can scientists of the highest rank; and was universally 
admitted to be genuine in her work. All possibility for 
fraud has been eliminated. 

Compare these two cataleptics, Mohammed and Mrs. 
Piper, and you have two similar examples of the same 
wonderful power, with an immense intellectual gulf 
separating them. Give to the modern personage the 
same breadth of brain and skill of execution that Mo¬ 
hammed possessed, together with his ability of leader¬ 
ship, and the age in which we live, with its millions of un¬ 
decided minds ready to grasp anything within reach, 
would witness the foundation of a new religion. Yet the 
sum of the whole story is merely that catalepsy is an open 
gateway revealing to us some things that the ordinary 
mind cannot understand because they are not in its line. 

The conscious mind is a magnetic use of animal intelli¬ 
gence. It does not know how to interpret experiences 
not within its province. When something happens 
through the action of the sub-conscious faculty, the regu¬ 
lar mind seeks to explain it, and thus it flies away into the 
spiritual realm in the search after reasons. What man 
does not understand he ascribes to superhuman causes, 
to spirits. This was so when comets and earthquakes 
over-awed the people; it is so when the sub-conscious 
mind manifests itself. The intelligence of the masses 
may be something better in this century than it was in 
the dark ages, but the case with which enormous numbers 


70 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


of people accord their belief to such doctrines as spirit¬ 
ualism, faith-cure and the like, shows that the brain 
is far from perfect. They are not able to see that certain 
facts, which are clear enough as facts, may be accounted 
for in more than one way. Their limited intelligence 
compels them to say that because “such is so and so,” it 
therefore is proof of something else. 

The lack of magnetism is the cause of catalepsy. A 
person who has died in this condition, as was the fate of 
Irving Bishop and others, shows a low state of the gang¬ 
lionic electrical cells throughout the body; and this is the 
surest indication of a depleted vitality or magnetism. It 
is equally true that the lack of the very same vitality, not 
the vitality of the functions that keep the body alive, 
but that of the nervous system, is always apparent when a 
person is hypnotized. Magnetism is more or less fleeting 
in weak characters. It is an essence, a quality, an en¬ 
dowment that comes and goes, and is held within one’s 
grasp only by life’s energy, in which mind and will play 
important parts. 

Let this magnetism be withdrawn by the will itself, 
as when a person hypnotizes himself; or let it be expelled 
by a stronger personality; and the condition is ripe for 
the influence of another who understands how to take 
advantage of it. The operator may not know what op¬ 
poses him, but he feels that something stands in the 
way, and he proceeds to remove the obstacle. Thus 
many break down the barrier of magnetism in the subject 
with no knowledge of its nature. When disease destroys 
the magnetic vitality, catalepsy follows; when a superior 
will removes it, hypnotism follows. 


“Bitter and sweet, when wintry evenings fall 
Across the quivering, smoking hearth, to hear 
Old memory*s notes sway softly far and near, 
While ring the chimes across the gray fog*s pall.** 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 71 


t* * * *"* * * 4 5* 

X 13 X 

X | 

^W m * 4 *» m W*** m X**» m «*** m **** m * m **** , ***‘** 

Hypnotic depressions are contagious. 

This is the Thirteenth Principle. The rise and fall of 
the tides of magnetism in any human being are as fre¬ 
quent as the movements of the ocean, although they oc¬ 
cur without regularity of interval, and are dependent 
upon moods rather than habits. Thought and will are 
more evanescent than is supposed. They yield to in¬ 
fluences of the day, to the power of circumstances, and 
especially to the will of others. Most persons are partly 
hypnotized without knowledge of it, and would indig¬ 
nantly deny the charge if made to them. Of course this 
kind of influence is depressing. Magnetism arouses one 
because it gives him some of the energy of another. Hyp¬ 
notic waves have the opposite effect. 

In some degree, however slight, the contagion of this 
depression spreads and may reach a room full of persons. 
Gaping or yawning often does this. The act is, in itself, 
evidence of weak vitality, and this is depressing. One 
person starts to yawn; another follows, and the move¬ 
ment goes around the room several times. Experiments 
have been made in the same line, by imitating the act 
of gaping with the hands, opening and shutting them 
from contact at the wrist; and other persons, seeing them, 
have been set to gaping. This has been done without 
suggestion of any kind. Even the reading of the 
description of this imitation has created a desire to gape. 

Depressions in mass, involving many persons, have fre¬ 
quently occurred; and few are free from their influence at 
some time or other in life. Many are very susceptible. 
They do not call it hypnotism, as that explanation is an 
unpopular one; but there is no doubt that the same law 
reaches all cases of this kind, varying merely in degree. 


72 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


Bad news affecting one person, is felt by others in sympa¬ 
thy, and even by those who are not. It often happens 
that one in a party, or one member of a household, will 
receive a so-called presentiment of misfortune, and others 
present will feel the same depression. Reports from 
numberless sources confirm this kind of experience. 
There is no doubt that it is due, in its spreading at least, 
to the action of hypnotism in a slight degree. 

While it is not so easy to completely hypnotize a per¬ 
son as it is to magnetize one, it is much easier to partly 
hypnotize than to magnetize. This law is almost para¬ 
mount to a principle. It is important enough to remem¬ 
ber at all times. Following out the idea, without know¬ 
ing the law, many speakers and persons in conversation 
seek to take advantage of it, and gain a temporary in¬ 
fluence by relating sad stories, cases of distress, and the 
like. We know a clergyman who ended every sermon 
with some such narration, and dismissed his congregation 
while in a depressed condition. It required some hours 
for some of them to wake up. 



Hypnotism appears in all degrees of force as a control¬ 
ling power. 

This is the Fourteenth Principle. We do not hesitate 
to declare that in proportion as vitality or magnetism is 
strong all tendency to being hypnotized is weakened. 
While complete control is not possible until the magne¬ 
tism of the individual is entirely overcome, it is true that 
the stock in store by the latter may be so weak as to 
be easily driven out. 

Few persons, however, are made to give up their mag¬ 
netism, for the attempt to overcome them usually causes 
a reaction; whereupon the will sets to work and new 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 73 


energy is at once created. It is not always the open 
operator who is thus resisted. Lecturers, evangelists 
and other depressers, who, instead of winning by magne¬ 
tism, seek to obtain control through the opposite course, 
are not hypnotizers, hut are merely agents of depression 
that lead to a condition which in itself is hypnotism. One 
who gapes cannot lay claim to power; it is the gape that 
does it. The picture of a person yawning was hung up 
in a school-room as an experiment; as a result every 
student there began to yawn, all unconsciously. These 
things show that there is such a condition as self-hyp¬ 
notism. 

We are nearly all of us subject to it; and this could not 
be true if it did not appear in degrees. The scale of con¬ 
trol is a long one, extending from the slightest influence 
to that of complete sleep. The few persons who never 
came under the spell are those who are highly magnetic, 
and they are altogether unimpressionable. They seem 
cold in their nature, and lacking in sympathy for the 
misfortunes of others; while possessing an attractive 
personal power. They are recognized as strong in all 
their faculties and as leaders of mankind. All others, 
however, come under some degree of hypnotic influence 
sooner or later; and few are aware that they are thus 
partly controlled. 

I: 15 

Clairvoyance is induced by hypnotism. 

This is the Fifteenth Principle. The word clairvoy¬ 
ance means clear seeing, and is supposed to have its ori¬ 
gin in the idea that all material objects are transparent. 
If the fact exists at all, it is true that the perception an¬ 
nihilates space and time, and penetrates solid walls as 




74 UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 

easily as the physical eye leaps through the matter of the 
atmosphere. 

No case of genuine clairvoyance ever existed that was 
not induced by hypnotism of one kind or another; that is, 
by the influence of an operator, or by the action of self- 
hypnotizing. The latter is well proved. Most trance- 
mediums, or clairvoyants, are so in name only; in reality 
they are either out and out frauds or are weak in the 
powers they profess. While many of them may have 
been the subjects of mesmerists and have thus ascertained 
their ability to act as clairvoyants, it is claimed that the 
majority have never been operated upon but have dis¬ 
covered that they were endowed with the faculty of put¬ 
ting themselves into the sleep. We shall show how this 
is done, a few pages later. 

From information at hand it is probable that thousands 
of men and women are living in this country who have 
been hypnotized, and that many more are added to the 
numbers yearly. Of these, nearly all might become 
trance-mediums if they were followed up and trained in 
that line of development. There are such mediums who 
lack all power except when hypnotists are in attendance 
to put them to sleep; some pretend to carry on the busi¬ 
ness alone, and, no matter what might be the genuineness 
of their work when under control, they are impotent 
as self-mesmerizers. On the other hand it is rare that a 
trance-medium is also a self-mesmerizer; a few such exist, 
yet they are valueless most of the time. One who is 
genuine suffers much loss of vitality by continually clos¬ 
ing out the conscious faculties; and the cataleptic sleep 
is dangerous if persisted in too frequently. 

We therefore conclude that the genuine clairvoyants 
are not always able or willing to exert themselves except 
upon important occasions; that those who are trustworthy 
at times are not generally so, but depend upon a few re¬ 
markable strokes of success for the maintenance of repu- 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 75 


tation and patronage; and that the general crowd of ad¬ 
vertisers of this kind are pure shams, some admittedly 
possessing a faint degree of telepathic energy, while 
others have none. We have met those who are genuine, 
and find that they are discredited because they advertise 
to foretell events. Knowing that they are endowed with 
clairvoyant powers, but hardly coming in contact with 
the details of their own work, they assume the impossible, 
and are charged with dishonesty while not actually guilty. 

Clairvoyance is the operation of the sub-conscious 
mind; a faculty that is alert night and day in every 
human being, hut of which we have little or no knowledge 
except by intuition, for the reason that by some kind of 
doom which seems unaccountable, the connection between 
this inner mind and the regular mind has been severed. 
The sub-conscious faculty lives, acts and attends to its 
duties with untiring zeal. Its chief power is the clear 
perception that travels any distance in a second, and sees 
without the aid of the senses. This is universally ad¬ 
mitted to he the fact. If we could only know what is 
known by the inner brain, we would be omniscient. Fate 
or nature has ordained that we cannot secure such knowl¬ 
edge while the regular mind is conscious; so this must 
be put to sleep, the body must become dead through the 
suspension of its action in catalepsy, and then the inner 
mind partly reveals itself to others but not to the indi¬ 
vidual. 

Such is the fall of man. Let any person succeed in 
uniting these two minds, so that the conscious faculty 
may take advantage of the knowledge that comes within 
the grasp of the sub-conscious, and all things would lie 
open, revealed in every detail. A few persons have been 
rarely endowed in this respect, and but partly so; yet 
they have been the world’s geniuses. It must be that 
man has fallen from the loftiest of pedestals, or has yet 
to attain his noblest of estates. The proposition is as 


76 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


plain and as accurate as the most exact of mathematical 
statements. It cannot be refuted. The goal is too great 
to contemplate. Whether any of this race will ever 
reach it or not, is beyond knowledge. It would require 
a revolution of all faculties, and of all methods of living, 
to enable mankind to step into a realm so close at hand 
and so far away. 

Under present conditions the penalty of clairvoyance 
is a severe one. It comes only from catalepsy; and this is 
merely a dying of the normal life of the body; or such a 
suspension as resembles death, and for the time being is 
its equal. When the life is removed, for it seems to be 
an obstacle, then the sub-conscious faculty may become 
alert. It probably does, although there is no way of find¬ 
ing out unless others are present. Sleep is not catalepsy, 
and the dreams that come may have no relation to the 
sub-conscious life. The latter is presumably awake, but 
we cannot connect with it. Death, as near as we can 
produce it, removes the barrier, which is life; then the 
inner faculty may be partly connected with. This would 
argue that death is the opening of the life within; but the 
fact known may have no relation whatever to the assump¬ 
tion. Things are not proved in that way. A great gulf of 
other possibilities separates the fact from the assumption. 

Some day we may come nearer to the proof. Investi¬ 
gation is rapidly tending that way. It is your duty to go 
no further than facts, and to avoid conclusions that only 
seemed warranted. For years it was considered proof 
positive of a spirit communication when a medium talked 
with the memories of those who lived or died; the fact be¬ 
ing that the various personages who speak through the 
medium are characters that live in her inner brain, just 
as all kinds of characters dwell in the regular mind; and 
that inner brain, having clairvoyant powers, can see far 
beyond all ordinary expectation. It can perceive 
thoughts, call out of the great fund of lost memories many 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 77 


exact things, reproduce persons and talks that have ex¬ 
isted and now are nearly forgotten, and startle us with 
speeches, descriptions and details that no ordinary facul¬ 
ties could acquire; yet because we, with our ordinary 
faculties, fail to comprehend them, we certainly have no 
right to set up the claim that these are spirits from the 
spirit world talking through the muddy vesture of this 
medium. 

Such a claim is not only without foundation, but it is 
ridiculous. The power is that of clear-seeing, and it is a 
remarkable one; we freely admit that; but its clear-seeing 
merely results in its partial interpretation of what it sees, 
and it plays many fantastic roles in these translations. 
When a dead woman speaks, as it seems, she does not 
speak at all; it is the sub-conscious faculty talking. The 
dead are far away and know nothing of it. The idea that 
Alexander, Caesar, Napoleon, Shakespeare and earth’s 
most prominent personages must be turned over in their 
graves at the request of some greasy woman, and made 
to indulge in jargon at her sweet will, is too absurd to be 
discussed; and the fact that great masses of hollow-eyed 
people believe in it is proof of the hypnotized condition 
of the modern mind. 

The sub-conscious brain talks for any and everybody, 
in and out of all subjects. Being clear-seeing, it can go 
where our reasoning cannot. Still it is the talker. Its 
men and women, dead and alive, with their descriptions, 
loves, languages, styles, methods, are caught out of the 
minds of others, present or absent; and its assertions are 
generally echoes of the wishes or expectations of those at 
hand. When a man says, “I died eight years ago last 
May, on Monday, at 2.16 P. M.,” it is nothing but the 
brain of the medium talking. But some one says, “How 
can the medium tell what she never knew?” In the 
first place, she is not telling it; her sub-conscious mind is 
telling it; and, being clear-seeing, it can know that, and a 


78 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


million other things, which the medium could not learn 
in ten thousand years of normal existence. 

Then comes the further claim that the clear-seeing 
faculty ought to be believed, or taken at its word. Thus, 
when the supposed spirit says, “I am dwelling in heaven, 
and your sister and brother, who died since I did, are 
here with me,” we are called upon to believe that the 
spirit must be, in fact, speaking, because otherwise it 
would be untruthful. Even this statement, in effect, is 
often made by the inner faculty of a medium, ‘ ‘ I am the 
spirit of Henry Brown; I am living in the spirit-world.” 
In such cases, the genuineness of the medium is open to 
question. But, assuming that she be honest, such state¬ 
ments are wrung from her by great efforts, if at all; and 
they can be easily ascribed to the echoes or expectations 
of persons at hand, no matter how clear-cut and startling 
the assertions may seem. 

It is always the sub-conscious mind that talks; 
never anyone or anything beyond it. The connection 
with normal minds at best is very imperfect, like a badly 
constructed telephone-line. The clear-seeing faculty has 
unlimited range among all minds, present and absent, and 
among all places. It must contend with this crowd of 
visions, this debris of memories, this hoping, wondering 
and expecting that linger in other minds; and it would 
be strange if it did not furnish all kinds of information. 
Still, it is the sub-conscious brain that speaks. There is 
nothing beyond it, except its perceptive abilities. In the 
case of Mrs. Piper, herself acknowledged by all to have 
been a perfectly genuine clairvoyant, the scientists, who 
employed her for years, admit that, while she was honest, 
the characters who spoke in her were rarely truthful 
when talking of themselves, and generally truthful when 
detailing events and descriptions. So it is largely a 
muddle, with some startling accuracies at times that 
overwhelm the mind. 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 79 


The future cannot be told by clairvoyants. Those who 
claim to do it, are either deliberate frauds or else are the 
dupes of their own powers. We have already stated that 
the medium, when honest, is not conscious of what is done 
or said when in the trance; therefore she cannot know, as 
a matter of fact, whether or not the future is foretold. 
Believing in her powers, she is led to advertise more than 
she can execute. As clairvoyance is clear-seeing, and as 
the future has not yet been unrolled, it would follow, 
naturally, that it could not be seen. Coinciding with this 
view, is the universal experience of investigation. The 
past has been brought up, and the present penetrated, 
often to the wonderment of others; but there is no case 
of prediction or foretelling that has any color of genuine 
clairvoyancy about it. Here and there, a few things have 
been stated that can readily be accounted for as guess 
work; and some instances of sight into the future have 
been traced to telepathy, by which hopes or plans are 
read in the minds of others prior to fulfilment. 



Spiritualism is founded upon defective clairvoyance* 

This is the Sixteenth Principle. We might well say 
that all clairvoyance is imperfect. There is a limited 
amount of accurate knowledge concerning it; and what 
there is cannot be taken as a basis for any system of re¬ 
ligion, or belief relating to the soul. All persons at times 
have had some evidence of the presence of the sub-con¬ 
scious faculty; though most have been slight and unim¬ 
portant. The passing of a face, the touch of a finger, the 
noise of some faint sound, some call, or music, the read¬ 
ing of a thought, as when we speak an idea that another 
had intended to utter at the moment; these are common 
glimpses of this faculty. 


80 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


In response to a large number of requests for reports, 
we received tlie general statement from nearly all whom 
we asked to state if they had ever seen ghosts, or believed 
in them, to the effect that none had been seen, and were 
not believed in. But a few persons asserted most posi¬ 
tively that they had seen ghosts; and one clergyman de¬ 
clared that nothing could shake his belief in spirits, as 
he had seen one and believed what he saw. This seems 
logical on its face. If to believe what is seen, is to be 
taken as a guide, the dreamer, the delirious patient and 
the victim of tremens are able to prove all sorts of spirit 
worlds. 

Investigators have never considered it worth while to 
account for the objects seen in such visions. Some say 
they are the creation of the fever in the patient, the con¬ 
juring up of the disturbed brain of the dreamer, the 
contortion of ideas in the drunkard; but, as something 
cannot be created out of nothing, this does not account 
for them. A keen and sensitive mind may build crea¬ 
tions, so it is said; and this is used as proof that the 
visions of a disordered brain so originate. If a clear 
mind may build creations, it does not follow that they are 
built out of nothing. In delirium there is inflammation 
of the brain, the nerves of vision are involved; they are 
never free from the association of bacteria, and microbes 
in general; and we are satisfied that the smallest particles, 
even the atom itself, may be perceived, in rare instances, 
under great stress of excitement, not of the mind, but of 
the finest strands of the brain where impressions are made 
in the sense of sight. As microbes compete successfully 
with shapes of demonology and the reptile world, this 
would account for most anything seen by a delirious 
brain. 

It does not account for the evidences of telepathy and 
clairvoyance. These are akin, with the exception that 
the former is merely the power of interpreting, in an ex- 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 


81 


ceedingly slight degree, the facts known to the sub¬ 
conscious mind. One who can look into the thoughts of 
another brain, or who can see events not present to the 
eye, is a telepathist. All persons are such at times; some 
to a much greater extent than they imagine. All persons 
possess an inner mind; it knows all, probably; few per¬ 
sons ever catch the knowledge of that inner mind, be¬ 
cause the connecting links of consciousness have been 
taken away; still the inner mind is always at work; it 
leaks occasionally, and the regular brain grasps the 
knowledge, but in such little bits that no real service is 
rendered, except in rare instances. This is telepathy. 

Clairvoyance differs from telepathy in that the latter 
occurs under all conditions, asleep, awake, sane, insane, 
or in or out of the mesmeric state; while clairvoyance is 
possible only when the normal life is made as dead, and 
the sub-conscious life is called forth for interpretation. 
As most persons are able to put themselves into some de¬ 
gree of catalepsy, or become depressed in some degree of 
hypnotism, which is the same thing differently stated, it 
is true that they may experience some of the conditions of 
clairvoyance; and, under this consideration, it may be 
claimed that telepathy is its mildest degree; or that one 
may merge into the other. 

In either case the phenomena of ghosts may be ac¬ 
counted for on the theory of self-hypnotism, or that im¬ 
posed by circumstances. Fear and expectancy are com¬ 
mon causes of this condition, either mildly or strongly. 
A person had been told that a woman in white appeared 
nightly behind a certain tree on a certain estate, that she 
never had been seen elsewhere. He became so impressed 
with the thought that he looked for the apparition, but 
in vain. One evening, laboring under a special spell of 
depression, he thought he saw the woman, and his mind 
soon confirmed the fact, as he believed. The experience 
was repeated night after night for a week, when his mind 


82 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


cleared and the woman disappeared. It originated in a 
hoax, yet the ghost was a fact to him. 

A girl ran screaming from her house to that of a neigh¬ 
bor, telling the story of a ghost that walked across the 
road near the house. A month later she repeated the 
same transaction, telling the same story. This occurred 
for three months; the apparition passing from one side of 
the road to the other, east of the house, and always choos¬ 
ing the same place for its rendezvous. A brave young 
man, who boasted that he was anxious for just such an op¬ 
portunity of disproving the existence of ghosts, undertook 
to hold watch in the neighborhood. In the meantime the 
family had moved away, the girl was in a distracted, 
nervous condition, and the house was deserted. 

The young man secured a description of the apparition 
through a third person, and set about his task. He 
wasted valuable time for some months; but, at length, 
was rewarded by seeing the ghost. It appeared on the 
west side of the house, and was clad as the description 
stated. Before seeing it, he had become depressed by an 
affair that drove him to the verge of suicide. He was 
alarmed at the sight, and ran from it, almost in hysterics. 
The strange part of the story is that the intermediate 
party purposely located the ghost in the wrong place, and 
clothed it in garments that differed considerably from 
those seen by the girl; thus proving that expectancy had 
provided the sight. It was a clear case of self-hypnotism 
in a degree, occurring in depression; while the ghost was 
the clairvoyant perception of the description taken out of 
the mind of the intermediate person. 

What one sees may be doubted, but we are told that 
the evidence of two or more proves a thing beyond ques¬ 
tion. This supposes all persons to be honest. The in¬ 
dividual who sees alone may be charged with telepathic 
or nervous disorder, so that he is not able to credit his 
own senses; while two or more may not be open to this 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 83 


charge. A case is in point. A hand was seen protruding 
from the hole in the ceiling pf a school-house. It was a 
very thin, white hand, as of death. A female school¬ 
teacher saw it; fainted; revived; went about her duties; 
saw it again, and had to be taken home. She was nearly 
dead with fear. Although she declared that she could 
not be induced to go into the building again, she minutely 
described the occurrence, and anxiously sought a solu¬ 
tion. 

Crowds were attracted to the place through sensational 
and grossly false statements published in the papers; but 
the hand did not appear. The teacher was finally in¬ 
duced to return in company with some friends. She saw 
nothing. One afternoon, late in autumn, she was at the 
building with seven young women who had made re¬ 
quest to go with her. One of these was a sad-faced girl 
who seemed to labor under great fear. She saw the hand 
first; next the teacher saw it; and, finally, the others. 
An investigation of the testimony of the eight persons 
showed that all were greatly depressed by one thing or 
another, chiefly by the situation, and the shrinking of the 
teacher, and especially the disconcerting appearance of 
her sad-faced friend. 

The expectation of something superhuman about to 
occur, and the fear of seeing it, placed all the visitors 
under the law previously stated, that hypnotic depression 
is contagious. A familiar illustration was that of gap¬ 
ing, as given in connection with the principle. The 
teacher says she looked once or twice at the hole where 
the hand had formerly appeared, but refrained from 
gazing steadily at it, as she seemed conscious of a grow¬ 
ing condition that would naturally invite the vision. The 
sickly woman looked for it and afterward said that she 
was sure she would see it. ‘ ‘ Something told me I was 
going to see that hand, ’ ’ she exclaimed at the time. The 
fact that the others witnessed the same vision may be 


84 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


explained either by the law of telepathy, or the principle 
that hypnotic depression is contagions. 

If either of these laws is in operation, the only concur¬ 
ring condition needed is that the persons present should 
be weak in magnetism, so that they could not, or would 
not, resist the hypnotic influences. Then it would be 
strange if all did not see the same apparition. The 
testimony of the two or more, instead of proving that the 
ghost was a reality, would confirm that rule that what 
one hypnotic subject witnesses, all witness. Were it not 
for the contagious element involved in these matters, no 
magnetic person would be able to thrill hundreds with 
his power, or depress a whole audience at will. It is true 
that there are experiences which come to one alone, and 
which cannot be transmitted to others, even if present; 
but it will be found that such others are free from de¬ 
pression and out of sympathy with the occurrence. 

Spiritualism has no standing. A quarter of a century 
hence the world will laugh at the idea of spirits talking 
back, and especially in the supremely silly way in which 
they are made to do under the regime of their tormentors. 
The laws of depression and its contagion have undoubt¬ 
edly helped to establish experiences where partly hypno¬ 
tized persons, or the usual attendants at seances, are 
made to see, hear, feel, taste and smell according as the 
sub-conscious faculty wills; but all the claims taken as 
made cannot for a moment warrant the assumption that 
they prove any connection between the spirit world and 
our own. To adhere to such belief is evidence of a partly 
hypnotized mind in the believer. 


il We loved, and yet we "knew it not ,— 
For loving seemed like breathing then; 
We found a heaven in every spot; 

Saw angels, too, in all good men; 

And dreamed of God in grove and grot.” 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 


85 



The loss of all personal magnetism must precede com¬ 
plete clairvoyance. 

This is the Seventeenth Principle. Vitality, the spark 
of life and personal magnetism are all one and the same, 
except in the uses to which they are put. All these must 
be suspended in the person who wishes to become a clair¬ 
voyant; and the supervision may be directed by the per¬ 
son himself, by fear, by expectancy of a morbid character, 
or by a mesmerist. Sometimes it originates in catalepsy 
as a disease, but this does not generally develop the con¬ 
dition desired. 

One of the rules usually given to a candidate for this 
kind of work, is to subdue the will and to try to come into 
subjection to the operator. Efforts of the sort do not 
succeed as a rule. A person may be very anxious to be¬ 
come a clairvoyant, but personal magnetism is in the way. 
It does not depart by order of the will; for the more 
power the will has the more magnetism is generated. 
Teachers say: “Now exert your will all you can, and 
give yourself up.” This is a contradiction. It is like 
saying: “Eat all you can and try hard to get hungry by 
eating.” The exercise of the will generates magnetism. 

The art of losing one’s vitality is not easily acquired. 
It becomes the basis of hypnotism, and the latter must 
always precede clairvoyance. So these steps must be 
understood. How to take the first is the primary con¬ 
sideration. After that the process is much easier. While 
we do not recommend such practice, it is our duty to 
prevent the full course of procedure; for, if we do not 
do so, some one will, and the result will be the same. 
The fact remains, however, that the losing of one’s mag¬ 
netism is injurious to the health, while the cataleptic con- 


86 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


dition of body and mind is harmful to both. Some opera¬ 
tors give back all the magnetism they take away, and 
occasionally more, so that the loss is compensated in 
such instances. 

? f 

X 18 X 

x I 

The union of magnetism and telepathy produces extra¬ 
ordinary genius. 

This is the Eighteenth Principle. There are always ex¬ 
ceptions somewhere. A telepathic condition is one in 
which the conscious mind has connection with the sub¬ 
conscious. The latter is clear-seeing, has access to all 
other minds, and to all events everywhere. It knows 
everything. If the conscious mind were to connect with 
it, there would be no need of studying and memorizing 
in order to acquire knowledge. 

Whether these two minds have ever been united we 
cannot say. It is possible that the ideal man, the Adam 
who fell because he tasted of the tree of knowledge, was 
deprived of this wonderful power because so much knowl¬ 
edge meant infinitude. This is mere speculation. It may 
be true that the union of the two faculties awaits man in 
another world or a future life. If it ever occurred, or 
ever should occur, the results must be beyond all measure¬ 
ment. One thing is amazing; the sub-conscious mind is 
a fact, and a concealed one. It can be proved, but the 
steps to be taken are arduous and unsatisfactory. From 
this we conclude that the concealment is intended; or it is 
possible that the glimpses of light are guiding lines to 
direct man to discover more. 

To possess a faculty so powerful and to be unable to 
use it, is somewhat puzzling to the aggressive spirit of 
our species. To be compelled to assume the attributes 
of death, in order to awaken the inner, all-knowing mind, 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 


87 


and then to remain ignorant of its disclosures, is even 
vexing. Once in a while an extraordinary genius ap¬ 
pears on earth, and an analysis of his nature shows that 
he is endowed with magnetism in the highest degree, and 
breaks the rule of depression by possessing a conscious¬ 
ness of the knowledge held by his inner mind. Let this 
become a perfected union and the man is a god. 



Hypnotic depressions may become epidemic. 

This is the Nineteenth Principle. So weak is the hu¬ 
man mind on matters not personal or selfish, that error 
spreads like ink upon the wave. One idea hypnotizes the 
country, and a wrong notion becomes idealized and goes 
into history as a virtue. When the public are thus 
swayed, the contagion is irresistible. It divides itself 
only as the interests involved may warrant. Among the 
political parties, the epidemic is confined to one or the 
other of them, thus showing the weakness of the mind; 
for an apparent fact cannot be a fact at will, and a fiction 
at will, as the beliefs of partisans insist they are. 

When the whole population of the civilized world in the 
last decade of the tenth century, then confined to Europe, 
saw and felt the approach of the year 1000, a fear of 
great magnitude seized them. Almost without exception, 
men, women and children were depressed and hypnotized 
into the belief that the world was coming to an end. 
Wars ceased; peace reigned; and a spirit of love swept 
over the savage breasts of the times, opening the way to 
the Crusades, religious fervor and finally the Renais¬ 
sance. Out of fear comes repentance. No better illus¬ 
tration of an epidemic of hypnotic depression has ever 
been furnished by history. 

Beliefs are likewise spread through masses of people, 


88 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


depending on their condition of mind as to the readiness 
of acceptance. No matter how absurd an idea may be 
there is always something to believe in it. The claims of 
the origin of Mormonism are accepted as honest facts to¬ 
day by thousands; and if you assert this to one of them 
you will get the reply: “Of course we believe the story to 
be true; and if you wish to understand the sincerity of 
our belief come to Utah.” This is the type of all other 
cases. You may begin with a fiction, a hoax played as a 
practical joke, set it up in pretended seriousness for the 
attention of others; and, years after, you will find a peo¬ 
ple swearing allegiance to it, and their children reverenc¬ 
ing it as sacred. 

The sects of faith-curists, known as mental scientists 
and several other kinds, have a following that is not large 
but is earnest, including men and women who are openly 
above the suspicion of being weak-minded; but the enor¬ 
mous proportion of them that go insane proves the rule 
that mental depressions or defects attend most cases of 
hypnotism where superstition is the stimulating cause. 
Every upstart finds some followers. Religious fanatics 
are not without devotees. Schemes to make money are 
sure to allure investors of a class that ought to have sense 
enough to know that nothing but total loss can come out 
of them. 

Politicians are shrewd enough to know this defect in 
the popular mind, and they proceed to serve bait on the 
hook. Falsehoods fly like wildfire along party ranks. 
The people believe and are fooled; believe again and are 
fooled; and go on taking bait blindly. A million voters 
accept the skillful invention and stake their whole course 
of suffrage on its being true; always flocking like sheep to 
its standard; while as many more yield their faith to 
something exactly opposite. This following in herds 
cannot be accounted for, except upon the theory that 
masses of people are afflicted with hypnotic contagion. 


PBOTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 


89 


The manipulators of political beliefs during campaigns 
know wherein their party followers are depressed men¬ 
tally, and they study to supply the needed excitant. 

When a mesmerist secures control of his subject, he 
suits his suggestions to the nature of the person and the 
probability of their being adopted. This principle is 
seen everywhere in political and newspaper sensations. 
What is most likely to fit into the hollows of human 
nature is most paraded, and it is a profession in itself 
to concoct such matters. In the dearth of news in 1893, 
the papers started the rumor of hard times, exagger¬ 
ated every common occurrence and gave it color of dis¬ 
aster; so that the panic was a natural consequence. The 
depression was epidemic. 

History furnishes many examples of men who have 
done their country great service through years of sacri¬ 
fice and toil, yet who are suddenly overwhelmed by un¬ 
popularity, and almost in a day. Ingratitude is not ex¬ 
plained on any other ground than that the people, being 
deficient mentally, have no power to resist the influence 
of meanness that runs rampant through the land. Hyp¬ 
notic epidemics are always on the dark side. The public 
will eagerly devour ill reports, and scoff at good ones. 
A newspaper libel will take a page of type in leading 
columns; its denial will occupy a few lines in an obscure 
corner; or a page to a lie and an inch to the truth. This 
the people believe in and prefer. 



Hypnotism is induced by one person whose thought- 
waves coincide with the thought-waves of another. 

This is the Twentieth Principle. Waves of water, 
waves of sound, waves of light, waves of thought exist 
and flow in rhythmic action, each in its domain. In a 


90 


UNIVEESAL MAGNETISM 


water-wave the body of water itself need not move on¬ 
ward for a wave to pass over its surface. Sound will 
travel through still air. Light shines in absolute quie¬ 
tude. Thought is impulse of the ether that pervades all 
matter. It moves in waves of action as peacefully or as 
turbulently as the force behind it shall determine. 

A thinking mind is necessarily a magnetic one. You 
cannot separate one force from the other. When the 
magnetism is weak, the mind is also depressed. It does 
not follow that wisdom, judgment or depth of intellect 
are sure to come from the acquisition of magnetism. 
You can give the mind health without making it fit for a 
philosophy, as you can give the body health without pro¬ 
ducing the skilled artisan. The foundation makes the 
other qualities possible, but does not provide them. 
Where there is depth and breadth of thought, there is 
some degree of magnetism, and the two are associates. 

It was formerly claimed that no minds except those 
that were weak could be mesmerized. It is generally 
true, but not always so. If a strong mind can be deprived 
of its magnetism, the mesmerist may succeed in getting 
control over it. Persons who have become exhausted 
through over-use of the brain, or who are depressed, or 
otherwise out of normal balance, may be caught at such 
times, but would soon react, if their ordinary faculties 
were strong. In this way the ablest of men and women 
have been partly controlled, and these periods are called 
lapses. They are rare, and should hardly be taken into 
consideration in the pursuit of this study. 

Will and thought and magnetism run together, as the 
same or parts of the same things. No mesmerist can 
make any progress against either the one or the other. 
If the subject shows any force of will, the first thing to 
do is to ascertain if this can be broken; and a moment or 
two will generally suffice to tell if there is a likelihood of 
weakening. So one who is engaged in strong thought is 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 


91 


not apt to come under the influence; yet the waves of 
thought may be driven out with some skilled efforts. 
Likewise, magnetism will repel the operator. Whether 
these three good qualities are considered as separate 
forces, or as one and the same, varying in uses, they, or 
any one of them, will stand in the way of the success of a 
mesmerist. 

Thought-waves are alike when they take the same view 
of the same subject. If one person is thinking of one 
thing, and another person of another, they do not coin¬ 
cide; and, until there is a supreme command of attention 
given to one or the other, there is no hope of hypnotizing 
either. If one person thinks of the same subject, but has 
a different view of it from another, the same law holds 
true. The very first step in securing hypnotic control of 
an individual is in compelling him to think of the same 
thing that is in your mind, and in the same way. 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 

IS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY IN THE CONTROL OF OTHERS 



All humanity is divided into two classes: The hypno¬ 
tic and the magnetic. 

This is the Twenty-first Principle. It may be a matter 
of inquiry why we devote so much attention to this sub¬ 
ject. But when it is understood that the hypnotic con¬ 
dition must be swept away and the road cleared for ac¬ 
tion, before it is possible for one person to actually 
secure a valuable control over others, the necessity for 



92 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


becoming familiar with this, the greatest of all obstacles 
to success, will at once become apparent. 

There are in fact only two classes of human beings on 
earth; and from the beginning of time there have never 
been more than these two. If you are in the hypnotic 
class, you cannot be magnetic; and the chances are ninety 
out of a hundred that you are in the hypnotic class. If 
you are in the magnetic class by virtue of birth or the 
gift of Nature, or the result of acquired power through 
habits that beget it, then you are in a position to go on 
with these studies. 

This does not mean that if you are in the ninety per 
cent class, your case is hopeless. It is to make it hopeful 
that this book has been written. But let us look at a sort 
of summary of the facts that confront us, and prepare 
for the encouraging methods that are to follow. 

There are still grades of hypnotic influence at work; 
some in the home; some in the marriage relationship; 
some in ordinary association; a vast number in business; 
a still greater number in politics; and we find them in 
court proceedings, especially in jury trials, and mark¬ 
edly in most churches; while no profession is free from 
them. 

As a familiar illustration let us take a typical case. 
There is a church in a great city in America where the 
charge has been openly made and repeated in the news¬ 
papers that the preacher holds his congregation under a 
hypnotic spell during his sermons. The control he exerts 
appears in two prominent results. One is in the fact that 
the collections he demands are all over-subscribed. The 
other is in the fact that the church is always crowded, 
while the minister is not famed for great eloquence. We 
made it our business to visit this church many times 
during a three months stay in the city; and in this con¬ 
nection let us say that the hypnotic class of people are 
influenced by one or more of the following conditions: 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 


93 


1. Eye strain. 

2. Monotony of gaze. 

3. Monotony of voice that is alive. 

4. A bright light, if of very small size. 

5. Monotony of physical activity. 

6. Monotony of mental activity. 

7. Lapse of Mental Activity. 

8. Entering the DARK SECTION OF THE MIND. 
—The latter is so important a condition that it is made a 
prominent part of the Estate of Hell which follows in this 
book; and will not be discussed here. It includes the 
most recent discoveries in this line of study. 

Let us review briefly in new language the main points 
we have presented in this Estate of Protection Against 
Hypnotism: 

It does not require an hypnotic operator to manipulate 
a person; when in fact not one in a million of the hyp¬ 
notic class has ever been under the manipulation of an 
operator, or professional hypnotist. This influence is 
constantly exerted in every phase of daily life; by others 
who have no knowledge of what they are doing; and by 
the persons themselves, who likewise would be surprised 
if told they are making themselves easy subjects to such 
a power. 

In the world of Nature the use of the bright light com¬ 
bined with the monotony of a voice that is alive is quite 
common; as is seen when a cat, sitting some distance 
away, fixes its bright gaze on a bird, and chatters in a 
monotonous voice, quite low, and not easily heard by 
people, until the bird is thoroughly hypnotized, and even 
flies to the cat. This method is employed by Nature 
probably to maintain the life on earth, having in view 
the fact that the bird assists in sustaining the cat, and 
dies with less suffering than if allowed to starve to 
death by the slow process of the decrepitude of old age 
when it is neglected and helpless. Of course we do not 


94 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


see why the cat should be sustained in the wild state of 
Nature; but it seems to be on earth to stay for a while at 
least; and if the bird takes other life for its food, the cat 
may not be denied the same right. Fish in the sea feed 
on fish; and this feeding goes from the smallest to the 
largest kinds. 

Eye strain comes from the interest the bird takes in the 
glowing light in the eyeballs of the cat. A large mass of 
light would not do this work. 

Eye strain comes always from looking higher than the 
level of the eyes themselves. Great lawyers who, in the 
olden times, had permission to talk to juries until they 
won their verdicts from them by sheer hypnotism, as 
was the case always with Rufus Choate, “the ruler of 
the twelve,’ ’ as he was called, and with others of the pro¬ 
fession, have realized that when the jurors are seated on 
the level floor in front and slightly beneath the advocate, 
they fall more readily to the power of the superior 
speaker; but when the jurors are located in raised boxes, 
or when the six in the back row are higher than the front 
row, those that are higher are the last to be influenced 
except by the actual evidence. Choate used to say that 
he talked until the last man yielded; and that he was able 
to tell when he had won them all. In one case he talked 
for two days to one man; as the other eleven were with 
him; and he did not desire a hung jury. We know that a 
great advocate understands the leanings of the juror he is 
addressing and that he understands when they are with 
him. 

This brings us to the church in question, where it was 
claimed that the preacher hypnotized his people. The 
first thing we noticed was that the seats of the main 
floor were on a level line; not raised as they were placed 
in theatres; so that every person present was compelled 
to look up; and those in the nearer seats were quite a 
distance, relatively, below the pastor. 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 


95 


The next thing we noticed was the fact that the pulpit 
was unusually high; being elevated so that the minister 
could be seen by everybody, as the officials explained to 
us. They said, “We either had to raise the floor to an 
inclined plane as in theatres, or raise the pulpit; and the 
latter course involved less expensed ’ The result of this 
condition in the structure of the church was that a large 
portion of the congregation were compelled to lift their 
eyes to see the minister; and as his gestures were forceful 
and illustrative of his meaning, they did this willingly 
and constantly. 

But a poor preacher, judged by an oratorical standard, 
would not have produced an hypnotic effect. It required 
a man with vital ideas, a vital mind, a vital will power, 
and a pleasing delivery, to secure this kind of control; 
but we are sure that these qualities were aided by 
the height of the pulpit which produced an eye strain on 
the part of his listeners. 

Then his voice helped to some extent. It was very 
much alive, but inclined to a monotony of pitch. You can 
take this combination into any church in the land and 
you will have a congregation swayed in a hypnotic sense. 
It has been shown in a great number of other churches 
where the pulpits are placed high and the speakers are 
attractive, the contributions are of notable size. In 
other words, you cannot force a listener to hold the eyes 
uplifted without producing eye strain, and some form of 
weariness of which the hearer is generally unconscious, 
as the bird is when it flies to the cat. 

Looking long at any one thing has a similar power over 
the mind, even if there is no uplifting of the gaze; but 
the influence is weak, and requires much more time. It 
appears in the habits of people who work and drudge day 
after day at home and in factories, shops and other 
places. Farmers are almost to a man, in a large part of 
their lives, members of the hypnotic class, and it is for 


96 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


them that the blue sky laws have been enacted. Monot¬ 
ony of physical activity, no matter where carried on, 
leads to hypnotic conditions. It has been often said 
that the world is full of ‘ ‘ suckers, ’ 9 meaning people who 
yield their money and support to schemes that wise men 
would avoid; and this has led to the most vital axiom of 
all time that “one is born every minute .’ 7 

If you wish to learn to what extent the world is popu¬ 
lated by hypnotized men and women, answer all the 
advertisements in the periodicals for a week or month; 
remembering that these advertisers would not spend 
their millions a year for such claims unless they got 
their money back with a profit from the dear people. 
More than one thousand million dollars have been sent to 
fake companies since the recent war, in the belief that a 
big income and profit would be secured as promised; 
when in fact the whole amount has been a total loss. It 
is not always that the hypnotized person is a “sucker,” 
for there are grooves in the mind that run under control, 
while other grooves are in the opposite condition. The 
most pronounced of all “suckers” is the great financier 
whose astuteness has made him many times a millionaire, 
and who is swept off his base by the rustle of a feminine 
skirt. His mind has two sets of grooves; one place him 
in the hypnotic class when the influences are right; and 
the other makes him the monarch of finance and busi¬ 
ness. Look to your history in the last two generations 
where men are known to you by their publicity, and note 
the number of really great men who have fallen under 
one set of grooves. A collection of these histories would 
furnish the colossal surprise of the century. 

There is no doubt that many other causes enter into the 
work of making a person a member of the hypnotic class. 
These we will consider in the briefer but more important 
Realm, the Estate of Hell. 

But let it be known that all forms of monotony are 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 


97 


hurtful to the mind and weaken the power of the indi¬ 
vidual. One line of work too long pursued, the sameness 
of home life, the weariness of country existence, the hum¬ 
drum repetition of things day after day, all tend in this 
wrong direction. Did you ever know that there are ten 
digits on the two hands; that each digit leads to a sepa¬ 
rate brain activity; that the use of one or two, singly, or 
the whole in a bunch, deprives the brain of its developing 
nourishment, and that here we have one possible form 
of monotony. We know from many tests that the person 
who uses all ten digits daily, separately, but not in a 
bunch, has a much more vital brain power in all things; 
for you cannot help one part of this organ without help¬ 
ing all. 

The habit of putting a child to sleep nights by a monot¬ 
ony of interest is not a bad one; for the child ? s mind is 
more likely to be normal than otherwise; and there is 
little to fear of hypnotic results at that age. This monot¬ 
ony can be employed in a singsong style of melody, 
quiet and having much sameness, as the crooning songs 
of the mother; or in telling a story in which the same 
things are closely allied, with no vivid plot, like the 
marching of sheep through a gate, each sheep being 
about like his associate, and with no purpose in view ex¬ 
cept to march through the gate; these and other methods 
have been successful in bringing'sleep to the child; while 
a spirited and alarming anecdote with danger and narrow 
escapes, will work injury and lead to bad dreams and 
fears. It was once a familiar rule with elders to put 
themselves to sleep by counting’ sheep mentally; this has 
its value when the nerves are not tortured by indigestion, 
late meals, or indiscretions. 

Jurors are almost always members of the hypnotic 
class; or else they would get excused from jury service 
by some method or other. Like the noble bankers and 
great merchants who have fallen victims of the rustling 


98 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


feminine skirt, they are controlled by the emotions set 
going by great but dishonest lawyers; for no matter how 
great a man may be in his profession, if he pleads for the 
release of a murderer, or murderess, he is not honest 
when he knows that he is exerting undue influence over 
the jurors by trickery. It may be thought that there will 
not again be heard the rustle of the feminine skirt re¬ 
ferred to, owing to the change of style in dress, but ere 
these pages have been long before the world, the skirt 
will be back; and in its place we have the lack of skirt, 
which produces another but extremely powerful form of 
hypnotism. 

Owing to the lack of willingness on the part of men to 
engage in the venturous voyage of matrimony, which 
condition is largely due to the expense of supporting two 
or more persons on an income that does not provide 
properly for one, the women of the world since the great 
war was inaugurated, conceived the idea that men could 
and should be hypnotized by the exposure of parts of the 
female form; and it is a matter capable of proof that the 
recent styles in feminine dress were established solely 
for this purpose, while ostensibly made necessary by the 
cost of the material. But women on the average spend 
relatively more money on dress to-day than before the 
war, even taking into consideration the increase in price. 
The beautifully shod feet, the shapely ankles, the fine 
forms of the lower legs, the contour of the calves, all 
combine to make a form of hypnotic influence that does 
its matrimonial work successfully. 

The question arises whether this form of attraction 
brings about the right kind of mating that makes mar¬ 
riage a desirable bond; but with that we have nothing to 
do. The lowering of the upper portions of the dress fore 
and aft was also a bit of hypnotic scheme to help on the 
man’s desire for giving up his freedom, as some philos¬ 
ophers facetiously state; exposing the chest down to the 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 


99 


limits of legal permission; and eventually bringing the 
back into the struggle. 

This kind of attraction like thousands of others, takes 
advantage of the mind in its mental lapses. It ceases 
to do coherent thinking. The professional hypnotist 
seeks to throw the mind of his subject into a mental lapse; 
during which interval of thought, his own ideas are sub¬ 
stituted for those of his subject. A remark often does 
this very thing; as when a person is trying to induce 
another to sell something for a price less than that asked, 
the owner throws the prospective buyer off the track by 
the remark, “The thing costs me more than you offer.’’ 
The party addressed does not stop to think that the 
assertion is an oft repeated one in business, and he be¬ 
lieves it to be true. Traveling agents who invent many 
excuses for securing the attention of those to whom they 
desire to sell their goods, make use of this lapse in 
others’ mental operations, and thereby obtain a hearing. 
But it must not be assumed that this condition exists 
solely with the country bumpkin. 

With fully ninety per cent of all humanity in some kind 
of hypnotic state, it is no wonder that there is so much 
cheating going on in the world. People would not be 
dishonest in their dealings if there were no such con¬ 
dition as that of hypnosis to cloud the minds of their 
victims. The lawyer who deceives the jury or preys 
upon their emotions would not be able to succeed, and 
we doubt if he would try, if juries were not, as a rule, 
members of the hypnotic class. The same lawyer ad¬ 
dressing the United States Supreme Court would hardly 
dare to appeal to their maudlin nature, as does the ad¬ 
vocate who asks the jury to return the murderer to the 
bosom of his family and sixteen children in time to have 
them all reunited in a happy Christmas celebration. With 
tears in their eyes the jurors yield to this appeal, and do 
as they are requested with the suffering felon. 


100 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


*t**t^t**^******K^******* <H i***********t********** i i****' 

I 22 ! 

It is necessary to separate humanity into two hemi¬ 
spheres of influence. 

This is the Twenty-second Principle. If you will look 
back to the first book in the cultivation of personal mag¬ 
netism you will learn that there are enemies of this 
power all on the negative side;' and there you will find 
that, when such enemies are removed, Nature quickly 
builds the power in any person. The quickest way to 
acquire natural personal magnetism is to remove the 
enemies. Millions of people do not like to practice tests 
or exercises who would enjoy driving out these foes; and, 
to their surprise and gratification, they would find them¬ 
selves gifted in the art, and all naturally, without having 
practiced any of the tests. Of course it is better to in¬ 
clude the whole system. But it is the fundamental law 
of life that when the barriers are removed, the result 
always is power. 

All this relates to the work of acquiring the power. 

Universal Magnetism relates to the work of using it. 

The same fundamental law follows us now. There is 
but one class of persons who are capable of exerting con¬ 
trol over others; and this class is found in the division 
that we call The Positive Hemisphere of Influence. The 
one gigantic enemy of these persons is the fact that they 
are dwelling in The Negative Hemisphere of Influence; 
and here we see what is meant by the hypnotic class. It 
is they who live in the Negative Hemisphere. 

If you dwell there, you must move. 

This one act of getting out, instantly gives you the 
control that is most important, most powerful, most 
supreme; and if you add to this act of moving your 
dwelling place, the victory over the enemies of personal 


PROTECTION AGAINST HYPNOTISM 101 


magnetism that are set forth in the first book, you are 
already master of the greatest of all arts, Universal Mag¬ 
netism. 

In our private classes, and among the thousands of our 
private pupils for nearly half a century, we have found 
many men and women of great prominence in the world, 
which means that they have no time for exercises and 
tests; and they have invariably desired to achieve the 
most potent results in the shortest possible time; and our 
methods with them have been summed up in the follow¬ 
ing training: 

1. Fight down the enemies of personal magnetism, as 
stated in the first book, and thereby come naturally into 
that power. 

2. Move your dwelling place from the Hemisphere of 
Hypnosis to that of the opposite Hemisphere; and you 
are at once master of Universal Magnetism. 

This does not mean that the remaining parts of the 
system are not of advantage; they are, because they 
quicken and increase both powers, and should be adopted 
by all men and women who have the time to devote to 
them. But the results of the above dual method, being 
natural gifts only, are so marked that there is at once 
the inclination to follow through. 

You will not at first believe that hypnotism played so 
great a part in life; but that is because it embraces all 
people in all walks, and under all forms of association, 
dealings, communication and contact with each other. 
It is a vastly larger and broader term than when applied 
to the practice of putting a subject into a cataleptic sleep; 
that form of it is less than one per cent of its whole 
scope. 

We are coming now to the lowest form of hypnosis, 
which is known in study as The Estate of Hell. 

You will find there, perhaps, yourself living on the 
wrong side of the world of Influence. 


102 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


Our duty to you is to take you away; but before we 
can do that we must show you where you are, and how 
you can get away. Then if you do not go on any further 
in this great study, you will have at once come into pos¬ 
session of the power of Universal Magnetism. We hope 
that you are not dwelling in the wrong Hemisphere. We 
shall see. The next Realm will tell the facts. 

Having moved into the Hemisphere of Control, you will 
then find your subjects in both these Hemispheres. Those 
that you will enjoy best as subjects will dwell in the same 
Hemisphere with you, that known as the magnetic. But 
they will not be numerous. In dealing with them, you 
will find that it will be necessary to employ what is 
called The Crystal Mind, which is being now made pub¬ 
lic for the first time. Without it, you will find that all 
dwellers in the Hemisphere of Control have more or less 
power to protect themselves from all kinds of influence; 
hence the Crystal Mind must determine the question of 
supremacy. 

But ninety per cent of your subjects will be found 
living in the other Hemisphere; those that are too far in 
the DARK OF THE MIND will be most pitiable, and you 
may feel inclined to help them into a better condition. 
The others are the usual dupes; some are always dupes; 
others only in certain lines of activity and thinking. 
We will make you acquainted with them, and will show 
you how to deal with them. 

Now we enter a briefer Estate, but one of the utmost 
importance. 


w 


“There’s quiet in that Angel’s glance, 

There’s rest in his still countenance! 

He modes no grief with idle cheer, 

Nor wounds with words the mourner’s ear.’* 


REALM THREE 


W HEN all the sister planets have decayed; 

When rapt in fire the realms of ether glow, 
And Heaven’s last thunder shakes the world below; 
Thou, undismayed, shalt o’er the ruins smile, 

And light thy torch at Nature’s funeral pile!” 


The Estate of Hell 

IN THE 

BLACK SHADOWS OF EXISTENCE 


‘DUT when the Ill stood clear and plain, 

^ And naked Wrong was bold to brave, 
And naught was left but bitter Hate — 
We paid them in the coin they gave 
We strode as stalks a lion forth 
At dawn, a lion wrathful-eyed; 

Blows rained we, dealing shame on shame 
And humbling pomp and quelling pride. 
Too kind a man may be with fools, 

And nerve them but to flount him more; 
And Mischief oft may bring thee peace, 
When Mildness works not Folly’s cure.” 

( 103 ) 


‘^^LORD! methought, what pain it to drown 
What dreadful noise of water in mine ears! 
What sights of ugly death within mine eyes! 
Methought I saw a thousand fearful wrecks; 

A thousand men, that fishes gnawed upon; 

Wedges of gold, great anchors, heaps of pearl, 
Inestimable stones, unvalued jewels, 

All scattered in the bottom of the sea; 

Some lay in dead men’s skulls; and in those holes 
Where eyes did once inhabit, there were crept 
(As ’twere in scorn of eyes) reflecting gems, 

That wooed the slimy bottom of the deep, 

And mocked the dead bones that lay scattered by, 
My dream was lengthened after life; 

O, then began the tempest to my soul! 

I passed, methought, the melancholy flood, 

With that grim ferryman which poets write of, 
Unto the kingdom of perpetual night. 

With that, methought, a legion of foul fiends 
Environed me, and howled in mine ears 
Such hideous cries, that with the very noise, 

I trembling waked, and, for a season after, 

Could not believe but that I was in hell; 

Such terrible impression made my dream! 


( 104 ) 



T HE earth is dreaming back her youth; 

Hell never dreams, for woe is truth; 
And Heaven is dreaming o’er her prime, 
Long ere the morning stars of time.” 



HE magnetism we teach is of the kind that con¬ 
quers; and we propose to show, before this book 
is ended, that there is hut one kind that never 
fails to conquer; but one kind that wins at all 
times, in all places, under all circumstances, and 
achieves a total victory, complete in every particular. 
Other methods may extol the advantages which a stronger 
personality is able to wrest from a weaker, but such 
victories are cowardly. The grandest man is he who is 
master of his peers. 

The word hell means anything you choose to make it. 
In the lowest planes of barbarism it indicates a country 
somewhere beneath the surface of the earth, where oc¬ 
cupations and penalties are suited, not to the demerits 
of the wrong-doers, but to the fancies of the inventors 
of the place itself; always reflecting the mental char- 
105 









106 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


acteristics of the age and people from which they eman¬ 
ate. Thus the idea of hell changes continually; it 
broadens its fancy, and losses its sting as civilization 
makes progress. If there were no penal codes there would 
be no realm of punishment. 

The human heart is so constituted that the more re¬ 
fined and sensitive it becomes, the more it suffers. Life 
is full of rough places; thorns abound on every side; and 
that person is most in harmony with nature who is rough 
and thorny, for he has less to pain him. It is the tender 
hand that is pricked. A gang of laborers are hounded 
and abused by the man in charge of them, but they pay 
no heed to the oaths; yet a sensitive fellow pines and 
pales at the mere intimation that he is not active enough 
for his age. The actresses whose character creations on 
the stage are ideals of life are scolded at rehearsals, 
until they have a right to believe themselves the trash¬ 
iest of human beings; yet woman shrinks from the least 
of insinuations in a more sensitive sphere. Miss W. 
says of herself: “I was told by a gentleman acquaint¬ 
ance that I ought to improve my mind by reading the 
best and loftiest works of literature. I asked him if he 
thought my brain deficient, and he said he supposed most 
women were a little below the average of their sex’s 
ability; and I became very angry with him. I went on 
the stage, and lost my ultra-sensitiveness in a short time. 
When the manager told me that I was the lowest speci¬ 
men of female ignorance he ever saw, that I would never 
know enough to go in out of the rain, I agreed with 
him. ’ ’ These are facts, illustrating the two phases of life; 
one, the hot-house nature, that quails before the least 
chilling breeze; the other, the sturdy oak, that enjoys 
rough weather. 

Conscience is supposed to regulate the amount of suf¬ 
fering to which a person will be subjected by reason of 
errors or sin; but training and habits control conscience. 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 107 


The more sensitive you are, the more you will feel the 
pangs of this attribute of the heart. The first breaking 
away from right-doing is fraught with severe anguish; 
the second amazes you; the third lets in some light on 
the ease with which you can sin and forget. The worst 
of crimes may be committed, if there is no fear of punish¬ 
ment. It is human to go as far as the evil bent of the 
heart can go without running the risk of detection. 
Take away the continual check on wrong-doers, and they 
will not stop at any limit. 

The blackest ages of history are not many centuries 
away. Then all power was robbed from the State and 
given to the Church, whose imperialism concentrated the 
armies and machinery of civil governments under the 
leadership of one great head; and blood ran in rivers 
through the realms of the most advanced civilization. 
There was no conscience. Men felt willing and able to 
say aught they pleased if in power, to the best of their 
race if out of power; and sensitiveness to rebuke of the 
tongue was absurd in an age when the sting of the torch 
executed the malice of the heart. What must have been 
the feelings of those who could put their fellow beings to 
death, watching them writhe in flames, is understood 
only as we study the possibilities of evil action in the 
present age. 

Pulling away more and more every decade from the 
grosser cruelties of a rougher humanity, we find the tor¬ 
turing fear of physical harm to be superseded by a much 
keener suffering of the mind and nerves in each new era. 
They once said it was not hard to die, and a body could 
be killed but once; we now say it is worse than a dozen 
deaths to pass through the anguish of mental fears, such 
as a finer age has brought upon us. So little is death 
dreaded in the barbarous and semi-barbarous countries, 
that the most horrible of punishments must be invented 
as deterrents of crime; and the agonies are long drawn 


108 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


out, so that the unconsciousness of death may not bring 
sweet peace to the individual. A step lower brings us 
to the savages, who not only laughed at such things, but 
actually courted the opportunity of enduring physical 
pain in excess. The American Indians never flinched a 
muscle when the red-hot irons were held gently against 
their flesh, and slowly burned holes into their bodies. 

Against the defiance of death and torture in the more 
physical races, we find the excruciating horror of a broken 
mind in this era of intelligence. The probability of a 
life in the asylum is haunting a million men and women 
in our own America to-day; for the rush, the hurry, the 
excitement, the hysteria of living are sapping the peace 
of the brain and tearing open the ever-healing wounds of 
the heart. There is no contentment. The rich are driven 
to distraction by their cares; the poor are planning to 
become rich; the middle classes are the fulcrum on which 
both extremes ply their leverage; the learned hate ig¬ 
norance, and the ignorant have contempt for learning. 
In each class the war of discontent, envy, jealousy and 
competition turns the hope of peace into a red flame of 
conflict. Fraud is rampant everywhere. The desire to 
cheat some one is responded to by deception from every 
source. There is no peace. The human heart is not an 
instrument of peace. Therefore the man or woman who 
can call all these warring forces into one compact or¬ 
ganization wherein conflict is turned to a united energy, 
will be clothed in supreme power. 


“Pacing the ocean’s shore, 
Edged by the foaming roar, 
Words never used before 
Sound sweet to somebody.’’ 



REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 109 


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The magnetic hell is confusion. 

This is the Twenty-third Principle. The confusion re¬ 
ferred to is that of the nervous system that may or may 
not associate itself with the mind. We all recognize the 
mind that is clear at one time and confused at another. 
It may he mixed or muddled by propositions too deep 
for it to grasp, and these scatter its magnetism if it at¬ 
tempts to deal with them. It is a fact that some of the 
most magnetic of individuals are not of a high order of 
intelligence; but they know when not to enter upon a 
line of thought that is too difficult for their understand¬ 
ing. 

The acquisition of knowledge, the riper state called 
wisdom, and the possession of intelligence are three dis¬ 
tinct matters, each apart from the other. As a rule, the 
crowding of the mind with facts weakens its real use¬ 
fulness. A college professor may know one hundred 
thousand things, culled from history, science or philoso¬ 
phy, more than the president of a bank or the manager 
of a railroad system; yet, with all his knowledge, he is a 
useless well, valuable to others, but of no avail to him¬ 
self. A man from the city, who knew city ways and 
methods, looked with pity on the blooming face of the 
country girl who was ignorant of all ideas that belonged 
to metropolitan life; and she, in turn, felt a deep sym¬ 
pathy for his ignorance of country ways; yet, while both 
lacked knowledge, they might have been highly mag¬ 
netic. 

Confusion appears in the mind as a reflex action of the 
nervous condition. No matter how much a person knows, 
he cannot express it, or even think it, if his ideas are 
scattered by his own nervous confusion. Hawthorne 


110 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


was accorded a high rank among the brainy men of 
literature, yet he suffered continually from this trouble. 
Actors have what they call stage fright on first coming 
before an audience in the beginning of the evening’s 
performance, and no matter how often they have appeared 
before, it takes some minutes to overcome this condition 
on each new occasion. History is full of instances of 
such uncontrol in the private and public careers of her 
favored individuals; they succeed in part, and fail in 
part. 

But the most distressful confusion is that which fills 
the lives of men and women who have no knowledge 
whatever of the method by which they may marshal 
their vital forces. They are one restless torment within 
the body. They arise in the morning in a state of dis¬ 
content, struggling to adjust themselves to the duties of 
the day. If they belong to the more stupid ranks, those 
that are always on the negative side of life, they may 
feel no responsibility, and by this lack of touch with a 
progressive existence they may be happy in a measure. 
This they can never be if they are on the positive side, 
for their very activity means unrest. A captain without 
an army has no reason to worry over his martial re¬ 
sponsibilities; give him soldiers in force; and he is a com¬ 
mander only so long as he is able to marshal them in rank 
and file and control their aggressive movements. Let 
them move along as a motley mob, and he suffers the 
pangs of confusion in his management. So it is with 
every person on the positive side of life who is unable 
to take charge of his forces. 

Such persons are unhappy. To be ignorant and dull, 
stupid, careless, and a negative part in the social re¬ 
lations of humanity, perhaps invites more happiness than 
to realize that life is worth living, and to try to live it 
successfully. “Only the simple minds are happy,” says 
a writer. This is not true. The fact is that all who are 


REALM OF THE ESTATE ,OF HELL 111 


on the negative side of existence are contented with less 
of the fruitage of living, because their wants are limited 
and their opportunities for enjoyment are less. They 
are often miserable in the little mind they have. Their 
periods of content and hilarity are due to alcohol or 
other stimulants, and in times of leisure, such as Sun¬ 
days and holidays. Out of their classes come the social¬ 
ists, the mobs and the tossing masses of criminal human¬ 
ity. 

To be actually happy there must be positive life, and 
this means magnetism; but herein the most acute suf¬ 
fering and confusion are found, when the vital energies 
are not marshalled. Existence is like a battlefield; self 
is the general in command; there must be an army or the 
commander can never realize the pleasure of victory; 
yet, in taking charge of an army, his responsibilities 
begin, and he may live to see his forces torn asunder, 
scattered, demoralized, and all rending his mind into 
shreds. He is unhappy without his army; he may be un- 
happier with it; yet he can never be happy without the 
possibilities it may afford him of achieving the grandest 
victories. 

This condition of confusion is one that should be 
studied and recognized in every life, for it comes to all, 
and some are never free from it. We look for its cure in 
vain if we seek it outside of ourselves. There is no cure 
except in marshalling the forces within us and leading 
them on in battle; but it is true that there is less of suf¬ 
fering if we abandon the captaincy and drift into the 
ranks of the negative souls that are blown about by the 
winds of misfortune and finally tossed on the rocks of 
disaster. There are no compensations for such existence; 
even the moments of rest are bubbles of deception. We 
must be going up stream if we would find happiness. 

Confusion of the magnetic forces shows itself in many 
ways. Every bad passion and emotion is touched. You 


112 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


do not feel right toward your fellow beings. You are 
angered at anything, no matter how trifling. The success 
of others weighs down upon you. Malice and a desire 
for revenge live at your elbows, spurring you on in your 
conduct toward enemies. Erratic fires burn in your soul, 
and their flames sear every honorable motive that ever 
had dwelling place in your heart. Policy sometimes 
holds sway over your tongue and over your deeds; but 
it is hollow, and the gain it brings is the progeny of greed. 
You are not happy, but are restlessly hunting for some 
means of acquiring happiness; always finding yourself 
thwarted by circumstances which you charge to an un¬ 
just fate. 

Some experiences may prove valuable as examples of 
the workings of this confusion of the magnetic forces. 
We predicted years ago the suicides that would occur 
among certain prominent men of this and other na¬ 
tions, particularly of the French. When confusion has 
produced anarchy of the magnetism, suicide is almost 
a certainty. The French hate to outlive their excitement. 
The self-destruction of Boulanger was as much to be ex¬ 
pected as the natural death of Gladstone and Bismarck. 
A stormy and erratic career is a sea of disorder, involv¬ 
ing mind and soul. Most persons, who are too strong 
for suicide, wear out suddenly, like a machine running 
wild, or jump the track and are ditched. 

The feelings are never at peace. An hour or a day of 
quietude within is a symptom of alarm, engendering the 
fear that it is too good to last, and that something is 
sure to happen to bring greater misery. Then, when a 
trifle occurs to mar the even tenor of one’s way, the dark 
cloud of malice arises and overspreads all the horizon. 
A woman, in conversation with a friend who had been 
loyal to her for fifteen years, happened to make a re¬ 
mark that was a little extravagant, whereupon the friend 
said, “I hardly think you mean that; do you?” “Well, 


EEALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 113 


I like your impertinence. You accuse me of deliberate 
falsehood.” “I did not intend to do so, but what you 
say is not true, and you know it.’ ’ “If you will find the 
door, you may do so,” exclaimed the woman in her own 
house, and her guest departed. In the evening this 
quick-tempered woman told her husband the circum¬ 
stances, and added, “I do not know why I spoke so 
hastily; but I have done it, and we are both too proud to 
ever speak again.” And it is true that, although a 
mutual friend tried to heal the breach, they have always 
remained enemies. When the thought of the old friend¬ 
ship comes up, the spell of malice fights with it until it 
is downed, and there is less hope than ever of peace. 

Magnetism is greatest and most powerful in the colder 
climes. The heat of the warmer zones tends to make a 
spirited person altogether too unreasonable to be classed 
as a higher example of civilization. This is seen in the 
South, where the feuds indicate that the magnetic vitali¬ 
ties run wild. Most of these difficulties have originated 
between the wives of the contestants, and over the slight¬ 
est of causes. In one case the families were neighbors, 
and a pet dog would emanate from the home of Mrs. A. to 
the flower-beds of Mrs. B., until the latter sent a polite 
request by her boy, asking that the trips of the canine 
cease altogether. This was regarded as an insult, though 
any reasonable mind would have thought it perfectly 
proper and neighborly. 

In the mind and soul of Mrs. A., the stormy unrest of 
hell began. She brooded over the note, over the dog, over 
the flower-beds, and over everything, until confusion 
reigned supreme in her nervous system. Herself counted 
a magnetic woman, she gave an exhibition of an army 
disorganized, running pell-mell upon an enemy with eyes 
shut. Her only thought was revenge for the writing of 
that note. Its language was polite, even affectionate, and 
the grievance was not imaginary; but she could not for- 


114 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


give the sending of it, as they had always been the best 
of friends. She could not see that it was her duty to obey 
the request. She could not appreciate the fact that a 
gentle endurance of a real offence, in this world of cross¬ 
interests, is far better than enmity and bloodshed. “I 
do not know what actuated me to do this,” she afterward 
said, in the usual groping about for an excuse, “but I 
believe it was the devil himself. ” If this is so, there 
must be many devils about; for her conduct was in line 
with that of millions of others who are unable to control 
their impulses. 

The husbands took up the matter; then they became 
enemies; then the grown-up sons entered into it, and thus 
the war of the families began. One night the son of A. 
met B., and crossed the street apparently to avoid him. 
B. had an errand at the store on the other side, but 
lingered behind, so as to keep out of the young man’s 
way. The latter reasoned as most persons do, and was 
quite sure that he was being followed; indeed, he felt 
so certain of it, that he went home and told his father. 
Mr. A. then came out, and demanded of B. why he was 
hounding his son. B. declared that he had not intended 
to do so; that he took his usual course home, and pro¬ 
posed to attend to his business if other persons would 
attend to theirs. To this A. declared his disbelief, and 
the lie was passed. Then came threats. 

After the foregoing preamble to the feud, it was neces¬ 
sary that each should arm himself. The mere vision of 
the other was the signal for putting the hand to the 
pocket; and, as they came upon each other quite unex¬ 
pectedly one evening, they drew and fired. One died 
instantly, the other in a few hours. In a year more one 
of the sons killed the other; a cousin killed the survivor, 
and the relatives and friends of each side joined forces, 
until twenty-six were slain. In some of the Southern 
feuds the causes are slighter, and the fatalities greater. 


REALM OF THE ESTATE £>F HELL 115 


There is no prevention for this slaughter; for, once the 
restless heart is aroused, it has no peace till death ends 
its owner’s life. The reasoning faculties never act in 
such dramas. 

Women are no more subject to the confusion of their 
magnetic forces than are men. They may be more re¬ 
lentless and revengeful, for they act by intuition or in¬ 
stinct ; yet men are as frequently given to these disorders 
as women. Two merchants, whose lines of trade were 
conflicting, met and entered upon an altercation that had 
no sensible cause; yet they became lifelong enemies, and 
were made miserable by their experiences. One man 
takes affront at some simple grievance, and he is no 
longer of use to himself, for he cannot harbor malice 
without losing his true value. We recall the case of a 
young lawyer, who met his death under the following 
circumstances: He held a claim for collection against 
a man more than a thousand miles away, and wrote him 
a letter demanding immediate payment. The man re¬ 
plied that he would pay it when he was able, and said 
that he could not be forced to pay by any “young snipe.” 
Here was the beginning. 

The lawyer wrote back a letter in the same vein, add¬ 
ing the words, “I do not propose to be insulted by a cur.” 
The man was deeply offended, although he had begun 
the malicious part of the correspondence. He wrote an 
intemperate letter, containing a score of opprobrious ad¬ 
jectives, some of them too low to repeat. The lawyer 
then replied in like vein. On receiving the letter, the 
man demanded a retraction at once, or he would come 
on and thrash the lawyer. The latter, who had not begun 
the attack, showed that he was not frightened, for he 
followed up the mud-throwing by another abusive letter. 
The recipient came on and killed him on sight. He was 
hung for it. Both men were built of intelligent stuff, 
and would have been accounted magnetic were it not 


116 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


for the fact that their vital forces were scattered and 
wild, lacking leadership. 

A large majority of men, on receiving the slightest 
provocation, will answer in kind, paying interest in so 
doing. Nothing bnt policy, the desire of gain, or the fear 
of punishment, holds most persons back. You may do 
a friend a favor, and receive from him a scathing rebuke 
in case he fails to get another favor from you. The foul¬ 
est of letters have been written to benefactors who limit 
their kindness. We are referring to the intelligent 
classes, who are supposed to possess magnetism in some 
positive degree at least. They are at enmity with the 
world and with themselves. Not one of them is free from 
this incoherence of energy. 

Women carry revengeful feelings to the grave. It is 
their nature. They refuse to yield. When two women 
quarrel, both are free from blame, and it has never been 
discovered that either is in duty bound to make over¬ 
tures to the other for a healing of the breech. Sisters 
and brothers, in a majority of all families, have fallings 
out that are generally of lifelong duration. It seems 
easier for those who are of the same flesh and blood to 
enter upon feuds than for others, and this may be due 
to the fact that more privileges and liberties of remark 
and action are permitted among relatives. 

Lovers quarrels are bitter and generally groundless. 
Magnetic young men and young women lose all control 
of these forces when disturbed by the counter influence 
of love. They expect all from each other, and, like the 
perfectly polished marble, show to disadvantage with 
the slightest defect. When they part it seems like the 
opening of a great gulf between two vast hemispheres. 
If obstinate, these misguided heads turn away, and point 
their noses of scorn in opposite directions for the rest of 
their natural lives. It can easily be ascertained that 
nearly all engagements are broken, very few of the 


EEALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 117 


original mating couples hanging together through thick 
and thin. 

Married life is a hell in many cases. This is due to a 
loss of magnetism, or a confusion of the forces that might 
be united and produce the noblest and the sweetest of 
peace if both parties would have it so. It takes but a 
word, a hit of neglect, a criticism, a rejoinder, or some¬ 
thing “light as air,” to explode the magazine and set 
off the ignitible energy. Men and women will not strive 
to control themselves. There is satisfaction in showing 
fight, in the pangs of resentment, in the silent tongue and 
“cutting” of life’s partner; so they let loose, and the 
sting sinks in, never to be removed. The pictured fancy 
of honeyed bliss is a dream that has its awakening in 
the realism of vinegar and gall. Some marriages are 
filled with happiness, and God blesses them. 


I « | 

X A 


Irritability destroys magnetism. 

This is the Twenty-fourth Principle. You get up in the 
morning; something goes wrong; your garments do not 
fall into place easily; your hosiery clings to the heel; 
your elbow will not go through the arm-hole; the shoe 
is too tight; a button is off something, and you are irri¬ 
table. Perhaps the vicissitudes of the dressing period 
are passed over successfully, but other matters go against 
the grain. It is a common saying that the day is begun 
wrong, and everything will go wrong till night. 

Few indeed are the persons who are free from this 
disease of the nervous system. It is more fearful in its 
results, both in physical and moral effects, than any other 
malady. It grows rapidly by letting it have its way; it 
is diminished by trying to check it; but once it has been 


118 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


allowed free scope, the disposition to suppress it is lack¬ 
ing. In its physical injury it involves the brain first, and 
then the mind becomes irresponsible, and the morals give 
way sooner or later. Solitude developes it very rapidly. 
A man made the statement that he could not be alone a 
half hour without uttering oath after oath, which he 
never dared to do when others were within hearing. An¬ 
other man declared that he had the reputation of never 
using a profane word, yet that, in fact, he swore fearfully 
a hundred times a day. He knew that he could restrain 
himself, for he never gave way in the presence of others. 

A wife in court testified that her husband was a man of 
mild temper, never having uttered an oath in all his 
married life; and she was much surprised when the attor¬ 
ney for the defence drew from him the admission that he 
“swore to himself when alone.” Asked how often, he 
said it was ‘‘pretty often if things bothered him.” A 
young man, who stood among the leaders of his class in 
the university, and of whom a great future was predicted, 
soon after graduation began to show a deep indentation 
between his brows. This became noticeable to his friends. 
He was occasionally overheard in a rage, and was taken 
to task for it by those who were interested in him. He 
made this statement: “I was once able to control my 
irritability, but I formed the habit of yielding to small 
influences that tended to distract me at times, when I 
was busy and had much to accomplish. This habit 
grew on me insidiously. It soon asserted itself my 
master.” He was induced to see that it might be con¬ 
trolled, for he did in fact control it when others were 
about. His books told him that irritability was the first 
step toward insanity, and he saw in his own example that 
he was slowly and surely tending that way. He has been 
a student of advanced magnetism for several years, and 
is to-day a perfect master of himself and now of others 
also. 


o 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 119 


Irritability is of two kinds : the one is the forerunner of 
insanity, being impelled by that malady, and not easily 
held in check; the other is the outcome of habit, and leads 
to insanity if not suppressed. That which is the symptom 
is due to mental and nervous confusion, and is the nat¬ 
ural accompaniment of depleted vitality wherein mag¬ 
netism is lacking or is chaotic. The gentlest cares of 
derangement are those which are on the negative or 
hypnotistic side of life; and the severer cases, as of mad¬ 
ness, are found among magnetic persons whose energies 
are not controlled. They are like engines running wild, 
without master hands to direct them. 

The kind of irritability that brings on insanity is al¬ 
ways the creature of a careless habit. It begins with a 
sound mind, and possibly a magnetic nature. No 
person likes to be thwarted. Life of all kinds resents in¬ 
terference. The ant, the bee, the fly, the cat, the dog, 
and all species, when not frightened, are quick to snap 
at intrusions, as though to fight them away. On this 
principle of resentment it is natural to u fly up” at any¬ 
thing that goes wrong and thus interferes with whatever 
you are doing. A little thing is in the way; with a snatch 
at it, a curl of the lips, and a knitting of the brow, you 
ejaculate some ill-natured remark that cannot help re¬ 
acting on the heart. 

One of the brightest young men we have ever met lost 
all his magnetism, all his good nature, all his self-control 
and, finally, all his mind by allowing this habit or irri¬ 
tability to grow on him little by little. Another profes¬ 
sional gentleman gave way, year after year, to this same 
habit, until he was unfit to remain in his office. He said 
this of himself: “I often meditated on the condition in 
which I found myself, and I often remarked that I could 
stop the habit at any time if I chose; but it got the better 
of me. Now I am going at it in earnest, and I will con¬ 
quer, for I wish to get back the prestige I have lost.” 


120 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


He failed again and again, until liis physician recom¬ 
mended the study of these advanced lessons in magnet¬ 
ism, and they alone saved him. 

It may be easily proved that a lack of magnetism is the 
cause of, and is also caused by, irritability. Vitality of 
body, of nerves and of mind will show itself in some de¬ 
gree of positive magnetism, and when the latter has been 
accumulated it wdll give rise to the former or some one 
of them. These causes and effects work both ways. Let 
some act of the individual lessen the vitality, and the 
magnetism suffers; then irritability sets in, and the con¬ 
dition becomes worse. Many men and women say that 
they are never irritable until they are all tired out. “1 
have full patience until I am weak from weariness; then 
I have no patience at all; I am cross, even ugly, until 
I get rested. What is the remedy V 9 The body and 
mind may become exhausted without depleting the sys¬ 
tem of its magnetism, hut this is difficult of attainment; 
it is a condition the average reader will never encounter. 

If you are irritable you should ascertain the cause of it, 
or what it indicates. First, learn if it is due to an ap¬ 
proaching loss of your mental powers; and, if so, go to 
work in earnest to supply the needed magnetic vitality 
which alone can avert the failure of this great organ. 
Then you will save what is more than life; you will avoid 
the wreck of your own existence and the peril of others. 
There is not the slightest doubt that this is the only 
means of cure. It not only furnishes the life that is 
slowly fading out in the mental faculties, but its vitality 
causes a healing, as far as anything can, of the nervous 
structure that is breaking down. The thorough study of 
this volume, and the adoption of its regime, as well as the 
following of this system of training, may be fully relied 
upon as a cure if one’s time and full attention are given 
to the work. Improvement is noted almost from the be¬ 
ginning, after the first reading of the book, for its in- 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 121 

fluence tends to shape the plan of thought and action at 
once. 

On the other hand, the probability is that your irri¬ 
tability is due to carelessly giving up to feelings that are 
aroused by each little annoyance. It is not because your 
mind is failing that you are fretful, but because you lack 
the will-power and purpose to check such feelings. Here, 
again, there is but one effectual cure, and that is found 
in the realm of peace, in the following pages of this vol¬ 
ume. We feel sure that you will adopt the plan therein 
furnished, for it is designed to accomplish such a result. 
Every step of the way is stated and explained with the 
most ample description, so that nothing can be lost or 
misunderstood. A change of habit is not easy. Great 
goals are reached only by strong efforts. If you neglect 
this golden opportunity, your career will be down hill. 
If you believe in yourself and in your magnetism, re¬ 
member that some of the sublime wrecks of manhood 
have come from the most magnetic of men and women, 
who permitted their energies to run away with them, 
like unmanaged horses dashing to the cliff. 



Worry kills. 

This is the Twenty-fifth Principle. A minute of worry¬ 
ing drives out a mine of magnetism. It collapses the 
brain, the mental force, the vital functions, and all the 
the operations of life. It destroys appetite. Many a 
person has commenced a meal, and stopped eating when 
some bad news arrived. The saliva stagnates, the gastric 
juices of the stomach stop their flow, digestion ceases, 
and there is no taste in the mouth. Don’t worry. 

A person may be good-natured and yet worry; it does 


122 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


not follow tliat the latter habit will either invite or ac¬ 
company irritability. Some of the ill-tempered persons 
never worry, and others, who are as gentle as may be 
desired, are so weak in character that they are always 
softly worrying. The philosopher knows the uselessness 
of wasting his energies over what cannot be helped, and 
says, mentally, that it will not make any difference a 
century hence, so he will not worry; yet, what his mind 
so easily solves, his nervous system will not always obey. 
Temperament, health, habit, all are involved in the cause. 
Indeed, it has been claimed that ill-health is the only 
producer of worry, on the theory that perfect health is 
buoyant and sees nothing but the bright side of life. 
This might be true if perfect health could be found; but 
as most persons are in deficient health, and are given to 
worrying, it is not possible to say that one is the promoter 
of the other. 

The first and most fruitful cause of this habit is the 
anxiety which is felt about the means of living. There 
have been such unpleasant stories circulated about the 
discomfort of the poorhouse that all persons instinctively 
shrink from the prospect of ending their days at that 
resort. There is a horror attached to it; and rightfully. 
The very poorest of humanity cherish the romantic idea 
of dying at home in the bosom of their family, lamented 
as the curtain falls, and tenderly put to rest amid the 
shedding of hallowed tears. These humble creatures 
look forward to work that shall bring them fifty cents or 
more each day, but as no employer is bound to keep them 
steadily engaged, they are always thinking of the hour 
when they will be idle. The only soul who is sure of un¬ 
limited work is the miserable wretch who is underpaid, 
who gives a day of toil for an hour of compensation. 

He who knows that employment may be had for a 
year will worry about the time to follow; if he is sure of 
four years, he frets about the blank fifth; if his contract 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 123 


runs for ten years, he is uneasy about the eleventh; and 
we know a Baltimore lady, who leased her land at a 
large annual rental for ninety-nine years, who said she 
was always uneasy at the thought of the lease being 
broken. John B. Gough told the story of a spinster, a 
thin, dried-up woman of forty and over, whom he found 
weeping bitterly at the side of a curbstone. He sought 
the cause of her anguish, and she said she was thinking 
that if she should get married and have a child, and 
the child should fall into the drain and be drowned, she 
should go distracted the rest of her natural life. While 
the story is probably not true, it well illustrates the 
tendency of humanity to borrow trouble. 

Worrying may be done in silence and yet be as de¬ 
structive of the vital forces as though it were done openly. 
Some women withdraw to have a cry where no one will 
know what is going on. Men often go apart to think out 
the problems alone. It is sometimes thought that if the 
means of living could be provided in ample abundance 
clear down to the end of the longest life probable, there 
would be nothing to worry about. This is far from true. 
The rich are always anxious. At a gathering of more 
than a score of ladies the question was asked, what was 
the most troublesome thing in life, and all but two an¬ 
swered, the servant question. Those who are too poor to 
hire a servant escape a large field of worriment, while 
those who are endowed with the good fortune to be able 
to hire help are to be more pitied than their humbler 
fellow mortals. 

We met a young man of unusual capabilities; one who 
was bright, smart, magnetic and of the highest intelli¬ 
gence. He delivered a course of lectures when less than 
a quarter of a century old, the most powerful of which 
was a strong assault upon the evil habit of borrowing 
trouble. Ten years later we met him under changed 
conditions, and our first remark was that he looked 


124 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


worried. “Ah!” he said, with a sigh, “Yon have not 
forgotten my lecture. I was a guide-post, was I not, 
pointing the way hut not going thereon. Let me tell you 
how it is. My income never exceeds two hundred dollars 
a month. I pay forty dollars a month for house rent, 
and it is the cheapest that will do me. Lighting averages 
seven dollars a month; heating, seven dollars; my gro¬ 
cery bill, forty dollars; my butcher’s bill, thirty dollars; 
my wife has three children and is ill, which requires two 
nurses and a cook, the wages of whom aggregate forty 
dollars. You see, forty is my lucky number. How much is 
that? One hundred and sixty-four dollars, so far, per 
month. The doctor runs up a bill of ten to twenty 
dollars every blessed month I live; last year he made it 
fully that, and he comes right along now. My wife’s 
mother is homeless, lost her fortune, and lives with us. 
My wife’s sister was abused by her drunken husband, 
and had no place to go, so she came to live at our house. 
She is getting a divorce. Being penniless, she must be 
taken care of at my expense, and being an invalid, I 
must hire and feed her nurse. Then the cost of medicines, 
clothing, and a hundred little things, must be met. I run 
behind more than a hundred dollars a month. When I 
was courting my betrothed—and she is the best of wives 
—I pictured to myself and to her a future in which 
parties, dances, theatres, drives and pleasures galore 
would make us weary with their abundance. How is it 
now? When I come away from the house each day I 
hang my head; when I approach it, I never look up. In 
it or out, I am unhappy. What can I do? If I go to a 
less expensive place my chances of earning as much as 
I now do would be destroyed, and while I might make 
more by starting out for myself, there would be a long 
period of time in which I could not earn anything, during 
which my wife and three children, her mother, her sister 
and two children, and the four servants would have no 


REALM OP THE ESTATE OP HELL 125 


means of sustaining life.” And lie dropped his chin to 
his chest as he plodded on. 

The foregoing case is an actual one, every detail of 
which is true. We ask our students to tell us for him 
what he should do. Solve the problem, if you can; send 
us the solution, and we will forward it to the man. His 
case is but one of hundreds of thousands in which the 
same principle is involved. What can he do? Shall he 
go on incurring debts that can never be paid? He 
tries to be honest. He does not spend a cent for pleasure 
while he is in debt. He allows himself nothing, not even 
a cigar. It is true that the two hundred dollars per 
month is a large income, but it is possible only in a city 
where the rents and other expenses are proportionately 
great; if he were to curtail the latter, he would lose the 
former. You may tell him not to worry, and of course 
it would be heroic for a refined and sensitive soul not to 
feel any anxiety for the future, whose opportunities he 
had mortgaged, and whose only hope lay in the opera¬ 
tion of the statute of limitations. To advise him not to 
worry is not to solve the problem. If you are in a bottom¬ 
less pit, and climb up one foot, then fall back two, and 
continue to move at this rate, how long will you keep at 
it without some worrying? 

Between the case just cited and that told by Mr. Gough, 
we see the two extremes; one with something to worry 
for, the other with really nothing. History shows us one 
kind of solution in the lives of men who have been reck¬ 
lessly careless, whose lack of worrying has been a total 
lack of interest. They have attended to the battle of the 
world while giving no thought to the struggle at home; 
and wife and children have died, leaving these husbands 
to carry on the conflict with less burdens, like the swim¬ 
mer who sank with three children clinging to his neck, 
and rose to the surface without them. The statement 
was recently made in public that men were not attracted 


126 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


to married life because of this condition; that they pre¬ 
ferred the certainty of their freedom and its independence 
to the other certainty of being unable to support a sickly 
wife and children. It is a fact that the most suitable 
men, otherwise, for matrimony will not allow themselves 
to be carried into the vortex; fewer of the desirable men 
marry; they admit this to be the reason, and the condi¬ 
tion is getting worse every year. Only yesterday a gentle¬ 
man remarked, “I am a bachelor, or soon will be so- 
called. I owe nobody. Single life means to me freedom 
from worry.’ ’ And he gave his reasons in full. 

Let us see what they are. He went on to say, “I have 
an income of two or three thousand dollars a year from 
my business. I spend one thousand a year on myself. 
The woman who would be my wife would desire a thou¬ 
sand for herself. She would be right. The rent and plain 
expenses would eat up all the rest of my income; and to 
half live, I must run in debt. Now I save up a thousand 
a year against the future rainy days; if I were to get 
married I would exhaust the rainy day fund, incur debts 
I could never pay, and worry myself sick.” Another 
man said: “I earn a thousand dollars a year, and have 
an extra income of two hundred dollars, making a total 
of one hundred dollars a month. This is good. I pro¬ 
posed to a girl, and we got ready to be married. I told 
her what my income was before the proposal. Her 
mother kindly figured out that we could not possibly 
live in a house, as the daughter could not cook, and a 
servant would be out of the question; therefore we must 
board. We cast about to find a suitable place for board¬ 
ing; the least desirable was twenty dollars a month, each, 
for meals and twenty-five for a room if we had but one 
room; a sum of sixty-five dollars. Then there must be at 
least twenty-five per month allowed as pin-money to the 
wife, five dollars for laundrying, ten for theatres, as she 
had always been so brought up; and here we exceeded 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 127 


my salary. So I stopped. Not a cent remained to pay 
for my own clothing, and there was no chance of laying 
by a little every month as a nucleus for a home. When 
the suggestion was made by the good lady, to the effect 
that a baby might appear once in every year or two, and 
that nurses, doctors and help must then be had, we 
turned pale as death.’’ This man has never married. 
The girl is a spinster with no prospects. His recent 
words on the subject were: “We both did right. Mar¬ 
riage under those conditions would have been a hell, 
and I am glad I am out of it.” When deliberate 
thought and judgment are paramount to love, few mar¬ 
riages occur. The woman cannot be blamed; the man 
cannot be blamed. 

Fussing and fault-finding are detrimental to magnet¬ 
ism, and these things arise in marriage more than in 
single life. It is not that we would discourage wedlock, 
but that we wish to state the facts when we say that, 
in that state, the man and woman both have more difficul¬ 
ties to surmount than otherwise. The wife is harassed by 
little cares, each trifling in itself, but wearying in the 
accumulation; and the husband, who has always been 
selfishly wrapped up in himself, now finds demands made 
on his time and patience that he never would have 
dreamed possible. Then he begins to fret, to fuss, and 
find fault, as though the f’s were following him like an 
avenging spirit. His magnetism flies away; it is in 
chaotic confusion. 

When we look into the lives of the most magnetic men 
of history we find them selfish in their devotion to their 
public work, and neglectful of family. These great men 
do not take their wives and children with them in their 
careers; they may provide well for their maintenance, 
give them fine estates, and spend their vacations at home, 
or bring them to some place of residence that may- suit 
their prominent stations in life, leaving them there as 


128 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


they go forth to their greater work. Daniel Webster 
rarely ever took his family from Marshfield, Massachu¬ 
setts, in those years when he was a rising star. Rufus 
Choate tore himself away from all home cares in the 
professions of law and politics, and rarely ever knew 
what was going on, except when within the walls of the 
dwelling, and then only so far as himself and his books 
were concerned. Edward Everett had won international 
fame before he was married, and his brilliant public 
career was free from home cares even to the last days of 
his usefulness. He traveled without his family in that 
remarkable tour of lectures in which he raised sixty 
thousand dollars for the fund to rescue Mt. Vernon from 
the hands of speculators. Charles Sumner had but a few 
days of married life, walking out of his home never to 
enter it again. And we might go on without limit, citing 
the lives of the world’s magnetic men who have been com¬ 
pelled to live in freedom from home cares in order to 
secure control of themselves in careers of grandeur. 

Exceptions to this rule are so few as to not bear exami¬ 
nation; their very scarcity being proof of the main fact. 
The successful men of genius, whose magnetism has paved 
the way to fame, are either unmarried, or are free from 
home cares and worry. Gladstone is cited as an ex¬ 
ample to the contrary; but what are the facts in his case? 
His wife, either by an acute knowledge of life, or by some 
kind spirit of intuition, did in fact accompany him on 
all his tours of oratory in which his magnetism was most 
displayed; yet she did this not to place the burden of her 
care upon him, but to relieve him of that and of all 
thought of himself. She watched his health momentarily, 
listened to his speeches, arranged through her own efforts 
and those of others all the details of travel, and left him 
free from all worry. Indeed this case, that is quoted as 
an exception to the claim that magnetism cannot endure 
or survive the wear and tear of trifles, such as surround 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 129 


the married man, is proof of the efficiency of snch free¬ 
dom, for Mrs. Gladstone had the rare faculty of protect¬ 
ing her husband from such annoying influences. She 
even knew what was best in diet, day by day; she went 
so far as to select the clothing needed by the changing 
temperature, and it was her pleasure to watch every 
effect made by him for success or weakening, so that she 
might guide him by her advice. Such a wife would save 
any man a vast amount of magnetism. Such a wife was 
Mrs. Blaine, who watched her husband as devotedly, al¬ 
though she did not always accompany him. 

Opposed to these queenly influences are the fretting 
and fussing wives that lean altogether upon their hus¬ 
bands, exacting not only all the large and small atten¬ 
tions due, but requiring them to manage the household 
affairs from the least to the greatest details. The man 
who plays nurse at home, who is housemaid and kitchen- 
adviser, whose little moments are consumed in petty 
chores that yield no return for the time expended, can 
never hope to rise above such conditions. He is anchored 
in a small rivulet, and will never hear the waters of the 
mighty river of life sweeping past him, much less catch 
the sound of the magnetic ocean beyond. We advise all 
who can control their fate to develop the greatest mag¬ 
netism in those years which precede marriage, as did 
Everett and others; then success is within reach before 
the cares come, and the fretting things may be ignored 
or thrust upon attaches. 

The habit of borrowing trouble starts with very little 
provocation, and sooner or later grows to be a mountain. 
Those who suffer from it are useless to themselves and 
almost so to others. It is the looking ahead, and taking 
to heart the possibilities, however remote, of something 
befalling. Due care is necessary at all times to avert 
much of the sickness and misfortune that would other¬ 
wise come; but there is a vast difference between step- 


130 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


ping aside to let the carriage pass, and sitting down on a 
rock to bemoan the chances of yonr distant relative be¬ 
ing run over by the same vehicle. One act is caution born 
of judgment, the other is a vision of distress created out 
of a weak brain or deficient character. Trouble-borrow¬ 
ers are always in debt to unknown happiness, and are 
always making their payments to the account of misery. 

Owing to an imperfect adjustment of things, there are 
real troubles that come to all persons; some seem to ar¬ 
rive in droves, like cattle on the stampede; others hold 
aloof till later life, and are gentle in their approach. It 
is natural for parents and elderly relatives to be taken 
away before you are called to go, and you may be com¬ 
pelled to see these dear ones laid to rest, one after the 
other, although it is possibly your wish that they outlive 
you. “I hope to die first,’’ said the wife to her husband. 
“But what of my loneliness V 9 he asked. Funerals have 
a most depressing influence over many persons, as they 
realize the fact that they must pass through the agony of 
dissolution. Not one can escape its dread toils. The 
older we live, the less we fear death. We get tired of 
life by having too much of it. So the reasoning goes. 
The better way is to realize the great responsibilities of 
living, and let death stand out of your thoughts. 

Most persons make some mistake in life and are 
weighted down by the thoughts of it. They seem to see 
the finger of scorn always pointed at them, as though 
there were no erasing of misdeeds. Conscience did not 
prevent them committing the error, but remorse follows 
the act like a dark bird whose wings overshadow every 
good purpose. There is no past. Actions proceed in 
chains, and the links of sin may forge their consequences 
in divine goodness. The after effects of wrong are vision's 
that live in fewer minds than the sufferer supposes. Good 
men and women fall, some suddenly, and some from great 
heights; but there is no crime, however black, that cannot 


/• 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 131 

be lived down and wiped out on earth and in the records 
of the hereafter by resolute goodness. There is no< past. 
You of yesterday, who broke the commandments, are not 
the same person who to-day honestly keeps them. 

If you worry because of the errors of the past, take 
courage in the thought that the past dies in its going. 
There is no past to-day, nor will there be to-morrow. He 
who resolves, and actually begins, to do right, overthows 
the soul, that was steeped in crime. The same body 
changes continually; the soul is driven off, and a new 
being enters in its place. Only the minds of mortals, 
only the memories of defective humanity, are able to re¬ 
call the iniquities of the past in the lives of those who are 
honestly resolved to act right. Neither God Himself, nor 
any angel in heaven remembers the evil committed by 
one who is saved. It is an impossibility, because there is 
no past. If it were not so, what pleasure would there be 
for you to go to heaven, and there meet the girl you have 
wronged, the father who slew your mother, the sister 
who brought shame upon her home, the wife who was un¬ 
faithful, or the brother who robbed the bank? 

Life is in the present, though always searching out the 
path for the future. Hugo could not remember much of 
the first years of his existence, and nothing of the epochs 
in which he had previously been on earth, as he chose to 
believe, for to him there could be no past. He had no 
positive proof of such prior living in the flesh, but merely 
entertained it as a belief. Knowing the calmness of mind 
that is produced by such a glance backward and a look 
forward, he worried about nothing. It is sufficient for 
us to secure our calmness from the fact that a hundred 
years hence not even our grandchildren’s posterity will 
know anything of our having dwelt upon the planet. As 
our ancestors of a hundred years ago are not known to¬ 
day, except perhaps by name, so we must be brushed off 
the globe as indistinct characters, whose only force will 


132 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


be in the spelling of the words that may be attached to 
our place in the lineage. 

Under such circumstances is it worth while to worry? 
Care should be taken to avoid all the mistakes, miseries 
and misfortunes of this life; no duty should be neglected ; 
the best of earth that is honestly attainable should be se¬ 
cured to our use; love and pleasure, enjoyment and happi¬ 
ness should be courted and won; but no man or woman 
should worry. ‘ ‘ Is it worth while ? ’ 9 Look at the open¬ 
ing illustration of this principle; think where your an¬ 
cestors of a hundred years ago are to-day, and where you 
will be a century hence; then become philosophical. 
Napoleon was immovable when he chose. Not a line on 
his countenance revealed the impression that the most 
exciting circumstances made within. Some of the most 
successful men and women have trained themselves 
against display of feeling in the presence of others, and 
this must come out of a perfect control of self when alone. 
Worry is full of life-destroying influences. It sends its 
millions to the grave every year. It kills life, heart, 
magnetism and brain. It is the enemy of ambition, the 
executioner of happiness. 



Pain weakens magnetism. 

This is the Twenty-sixth Principle. The nervous sys¬ 
tem yields out its vitality during pain, and it goes from 
the body in large quantities. It is not possible for a per¬ 
son who is thus afflicted to remain calm, except under so 
great a strain in the effort that weakness must follow, 
and this is almost as wearying as the suffering itself. It 
is true that some may cultivate the power of forgetting 
or not feeling the agony that is racking the system; but 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 133 


this requires will of the strongest kind, and while the 
mind is thus closed against the sensation, the loss of 
energy is going on just the same. 

Pain is always accompanied by a rapid waste of mag¬ 
netism. It is claimed by some that pain is caused by 
this waste. If not, where does pain originate ? It is in the 
nerves, felt by the nerves, and conveyed to the brain by 
the nerves. A pulling, stretching, pressing or severing 
of the nerves may awaken their action to the sensation 
called pain. But why not the bones or cords likewise? 
Why should the nerves alone contain the power of suffer¬ 
ing ? The answer may be: To warn us of danger. But 
why not any other part as well? And how is this alarm 
produced? Do the nerves vibrate in pain? Are they 
contorted? Does not the electric fire flash in minute 
subdivision along the fine fibres? These are certainly 
the facts, and we may resolve them into a simple law, 
somewhat as follows: 

Pain is an excitement of the nerve fibres caused by a 
violent movement of the electricity of the body along the 
fibres , thereby heating them intensely. 

In support of this theory are the following facts: 

1. Electricity is heating. 

2. Pain is always attended by heat. 

3. The electricity of the body is part of its vitality. 

4. The vitality is quickly exhausted by pain. 

5. Great pain is liable to deplete the body of all its 
vitality, producing death. 

6. When we burn our flesh the nerves alone suffer, 
and their destruction ends the pain. 

7. The cure of pain is not in conflict with this theory. 

It is known that if a nerve be pressed by the finger so as 

to shut off its flow of electricity, or if it be severed, or 
drugged to accomplish the same end, all pain above the 


134 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


cut-off still remains, but all feeling below or beyond the 
cut-off is instantly lost and cannot be restored until the 
current is allowed to flow there again. Devices of every 
kind have been thought of to hold in check this fluid of 
life, so as to cause less suffering. The gum at the teeth 
is frozen by cocaine to make extraction painless; but the 
half-destroyed flesh will not heal rapidly, and the idea is 
not favored by all dentists on that account. Hypnotism 
is considered an excellent anaesthetic, for the most diffi¬ 
cult amputations may be performed by its aid; but the 
loss of vitality is just as great, and the deadening of all 
the other functions, as in catalepsy, makes it harder to 
revive the patient. “Now wake up” exclaims the opera¬ 
tor, after the leg has been removed; but the patient does 
not wake up. 

Troublesome teeth should be removed if the pain can¬ 
not be overcome in any other way. There are very de¬ 
cided reasons why decayed teeth should not be allowed to 
remain, the foremost of which is the loss of magnetism 
and the lowering of all vitality throughout the body, in¬ 
cluding that of mind, of heart, of stomach and of respira¬ 
tion. These losses mean less pleasure as well as less 
health in life. Decay of the teeth always contains bac¬ 
teria of disease, and some of these are of the diphtheria 
species. There are numerous instances of continued sore 
throats, bronchial catarrh, sores, abscesses, and other 
maladies, that have been cured only by the removal of de¬ 
cayed teeth. We recall over a hundred cases where per¬ 
sons have been unable to develop any magnetism on ac¬ 
count of this condition, who, under advice, have had the 
upper teeth taken out and plates substituted, thus put¬ 
ting in clean, strong teeth that cannot ache or decay; and 
the result has been almost marvelous in health and vi¬ 
tality as well as in the acquisition of magnetism. 

Pain should not be endured, and especially not in these 
intensely aching little agents. Even the lower teeth are 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 135 


now substituted by the bridge system, so that much 
misery is averted. A dull, throbbing, unending pain in 
so sensitive a thing as a tooth is always a drain upon the 
vitality of the body. A neuralgic headache is equally de¬ 
plorable, and ninety per cent of humanity suffer from 
this one malady alone, not knowing that the cure is with¬ 
in the reach of all, as set forth in the fifth degree book 
of the Ralston Club. Yet few persons take the required 
interest in themselves to keep off this kind of pain. To 
endure it is to make a magnetic life impossible. Neural¬ 
gia is simple in its cause and as simple in its remedy. 

Other forms of pain, as of dyspepsia, rheumatism and 
sore lungs, are detrimental to a magnetic existence. They 
can be conquered, and should be expelled from the sys¬ 
tem as soon as possible; not only because they drain it of 
its vitality and health, but because they are un¬ 
necessary. They are due to varied causes, one of 
the most prolific of which is the reversing of the 
order of eating, or taking the heavy meal at the 
close of the day, and then having little or no appetite for 
breakfast. This is the height of stupidity, and, like most 
other kinds of nonsense, is popular with the sickly classes. 
The absence of the morning meal, or of a strongly nu¬ 
tritious breakfast, is the cause of some forms of headache 
and stomach trouble, which most persons prefer to en¬ 
dure rather than try the cure. 


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Insomnia is caused by erratic nerves. 

This is the Twenty-seventh Principle. In the present 
age of reckless disregard to the health of body and mind 
this malady is on the increase, and that most rapidly. 
We do not propose to discuss the remedy, as it is very 


136 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


simple as well as completely effective, as stated in the 
fifth degree book of the Ralston Club. We wish to state, 
in this connection, that when the tendency to insomnia is 
apparent, it is useless to spend any time in the present 
course of study, except so much as may be necessary to 
accumulate will-power enough to follow the cure stated 
in the book we have mentioned. 

It is however quite true that where sleeplessness is due 
to conditions that do not arise from a wrong diet, or from 
wrong physical habits, its cure is within the province of 
this volume of advanced magnetism, and then largely 
through regime and the use of will-power. Sleep is not 
likely to come to one whose magnetism is kept too active 
late in the evening, unless the ability to open and shut 
the brain at will has been acquired. This is discussed 
under another principle herein. The eating of foods that 
produce excessive vitality, as of the phosphatic kind, will 
tend to keep the nerves awake if eaten within four hours 
before retiring. So the use of muscle-making diet will 
keep the muscles twitching, and thus prevent sleep. All 
these matters are discussed in the Ralston Health books. 

In the present age, which is the least magnetic of any, 
the custom of going without breakfast, or eating one that 
is too light, because of a lack of appetite, and which origi¬ 
nates from the still more dangerous custom of eating a 
heavy meal in the evening, is fast destroying the vitality 
of the people. It is never safe to commence the duties of 
the day without a good breakfast to lean upon. The 
usual idea of working or exercising early in the morning, 
in order to create an appetite that cannot possibly come 
with an overloaded system from the night before, is as ill 
in its results as it is wrong in principle, for it calls into 
circulation and into the organs that need the best blood, 
the very worst; giving the stomach and heart the matter 
that is becoming effete. The yellow and bilious skin is 
evidence of such a reversal of the proper plan of eating. 


EEALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 137 

Add to the weakened organs a lessened vitality that 
comes from the lack of sound sleep at night, and the ex¬ 
planation of the fact that this era is the least magnetic 
known is easily understood. 

A condition that prevents sleep is always a dangerous 
one, and no time should be lost in correcting it, not by the 
senseless proceeding of taking drugs, but by going at 
once to the source and starting there. Of all the modern 
schemes, for shortening life, and destroying happiness 
while life lasts, the most inane is that which fails to 
recognize that an inverted method of living is the cause 
of disturbed slumber, dreams that tire, and insomnia it¬ 
self; while drugs that deaden the heart and nerves are 
used to force sleep against the continued abuse of life. 
It is exactly as sensible for a person to place a flame 
under the extended hand^ and then seek to rely upon 
anaesthetics to deaden all sensibility to pain while re¬ 
fusing to withdraw the fire. 

Nearly all kinds of weakness in this age are traceable to 
such a lack of judgment. As far as health is concerned, 
the matter rests in the care of those who wish freedom 
from disease. As far as magnetism is concerned, it is 
necessary to have the best of health as a basis, and there 
must be release from continuous pain; there must be 
natural vitality and sound sleep. It is true that, after 
a fund of magnetism has been secured, a person may take 
greater chances with health than before, as the extra 
vitality will permit abuse. The greater the life, the 
more reckless its owner may be, but while vitality is 
being sought it is dangerous to abuse it. 

“The clouds that fling 
The lightning brighten ere the bolt appears; 

The pantings of the warrior’s heart are proud 

Upon that battle morn whose night-dews wet his shroud; 

The sun is loveliest as he sinks to rest 

The leaves of autumn smile when fading fast; 

The swan’s last song is sweetest.’’ 


138 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


k 28 k 


A lapse of thought is a brief hypnotic condition. 

This is the Twenty-eight Principle. When the engi¬ 
neer of an express, under pressure of excitement, opened 
the throttle of his engine and crossed in front of a flying 
train, he did so because he 6 ‘ could not think . 1y His mind 
was a blank. Another engineer, who had struck a car¬ 
riage, killing two human beings, stopped at the place of 
the accident, then went ahead and took a siding to await 
the passing of a “flyer.’’ As the swiftly-going locomo¬ 
tive aproached, he advanced his train and was killed in 
front of the 6 ‘flyer .’ 9 His lapse cost his life and two 
engines. 

These absences of mind are very common, and show 
that incidents may temporarily hypnotize. They are too 
serious to be passed over lightly at this time. It is a com¬ 
mon experience with nearly every person to pass through 
moments or parts of moments in which consciousness is a 
blank; and this is excused on the ground that the mind, 
being busy with more important things, could not at¬ 
tend to lesser details. Such an excuse should never bo 
tolerated by one who wishes to be useful to himself or to 
the world. An animal can think of but one thing at a 
time, and it is generally known that if we can engross the 
attention in one direction, advantage may be taken in 
another; but this is not true of human beings who are 
mentally able to guard their interests. It is through the 
maintainance of a single idea at a time that educators of 
animals succeed in mastering them. 

The lapse of thought gives opportunity to tricksters 
as well as to those who seek legitimate control of their 
fellow beings. Nothing is more interesting than to watch 
the sleight-of-hand performer as he openly introduces 


BEALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 139 

or removes details of his entertainment while engrossing 
the attention of his audience in some matter that is 
strong enough to keep them engaged for a minute or two 
in following its action. Thus, standing at one comer of 
the platform or stage, he will hold up something under 
circumstances that give rise to suspicion, and will ask 
his audience to watch him closely, so as to detect any at¬ 
tempt on his part to deceive them. The matter is well 
worth watching, for it would react upon him if he should 
expose this part of his work as a mere trick to keep their 
eyes away from some more important change going on in 
the center .of the stage. Every eye is focused upon what 
he is doing; and, no matter how important any other 
action on another part of the stage might be, the audience 
would not notice it, unless something occurred to transfer 
their attention. It is very hard to watch two or more 
proceedings going on at the same time some distance 
apart. 

So well known is this fact that dramatic companies do 
not hesitate to take advantage of it. When an actor is 
delivering his lines, or two or more are engaged in a 
portrayal of absorbing interest, others of the company, 
who happen to be on the stage at the same time, are 
content to merely balance the scene and form an enter¬ 
taining tableau to which a little by-play is added. It is % 
only when the general action is evenly distributed in 
several parts of the arena that audiences attempt to catch 
what is going on in more than one place at a time. Even 
those who have attended the performances of skilful 
prestidigitators for the purpose of detecting what is done 
in those moments when the attention of the audience is 
being held to one corner of the stage are generally unable 
to withdraw their gaze and scan other portions of the 
platform. We recall a party of investigators who could 
not possibly follow the details which were enacted by an 
assistant in the center while the performer stood lower 


140 


UNIVEBSAL MAGNETISM 


down, close to the footlights, although both could have 
been clearly seen; but a more practiced observer noted 
the bringing in of properties, the presence of which could 
not afterward be accounted for by the audience. 

Lapses of mind occur in every-day life; and it is some¬ 
times claimed that the busier a person may be, the more 
frequently these vacuities happen; but this assertion can 
be challenged. A person may be on the positive side of 
magnetism and yet allow the mind to suffer a lapse. The 
sub-conscious faculty, even when it gives rise to the 
brilliant evidences of the highest genius, is in a lapsed 
state; its gifts of fancy, its dreams of coming realism, 
its charming leaps into the realm of intuition, and the 
glimpses it often catches of the inmost secrets of life, are 
all born in sub-consciousness. During the moments, 
hours, and sometimes days, in which genius revels in this 
realm, the mind is not a negative magnetic force, although 
its condition is lapsed; yet, in such moods, the poet, the 
author, the orator, the artist or other dreamer may he 
taken advantage of. 

Evidences of this character are found in the lives of 
most geniuses. Daniel Webster was always without 
funds, although he received as high as one hundred thou¬ 
sand dollars for his services in a single case. His money 
disappeared as fast as he received it; he was preyed upon 
by all kinds of beggars, by his impecunious friends, and 
by claimants in every station of life, even being so for¬ 
getful as to pay the same bill six times. The Biggs Bank, 
of Washington, D. C., still holds an unpaid note of his 
for the amount of one thousand dollars, which he en¬ 
dorsed for the accommodation of a friend, he receiving 
five hundred dollars for his own use. Any biography 
will show greater aberrations of mind in lesser geniuses; 
but we cite the case of Webster for the reason that a man 
whose brain outweighed those of his contemporaries, and 
who carried upon his shoulders the weight of the Ameri- 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 141 


can Constitution, would be able to attend to the lesser de¬ 
tails of bis own affairs. 

Under another principle it will be seen that the ablest 
men and women possess the gift of sub-consciousness in 
slight degree at least, while wielding a majestic power 
on the magnetic side; and this doubling of two opposites 
separates the few individuals from the great masses of 
mankind. In analyzing such characters we find that 
the magnetism on the positive side does not save the indi¬ 
vidual from the lapse on the negative side, and this is why 
persons who are gifted in some department of life are 
so easily taken advantage of and become the marks of 
schemers. It is recorded of one person, whose excep¬ 
tional ability gained for him more than two hundred 
thousand dollars in a single year, that he lost it all to 
sharpers within the space of one week. 

Passing out of the realm of genius we come to the 
every-day ranks of life, and find included herein many 
capable men and women, and those of high as well as low 
intelligence. Lapses, with them, are perhaps not so com¬ 
mon as in the limited class to which we have just referred, 
and they show a negative condition generally unattended 
by any periods of positive magnetism. As we have pre¬ 
viously stated, these are often charged to crowded duties 
or the many cares of the day. We know that the genius 
would be more successful in life if he suffered less from 
the consequences of his own vacuities, and the same is 
true of all men and women. In fact, the penalties to be 
paid by the ordinary individual are always greater in 
proportion, for there is not usually the gift of recupera¬ 
tion. Edwin Booth was led into an enterprise that cost 
him his entire fortune of nearly a million and an indebted¬ 
ness of almost as much more; but his genius was of such 
a high order that he recuperated completely, paid his 
notes in full, and left a vast fortune at the time of his 
death. General Grant was taken advantage of at a 


142 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


time of his life, when, owing to sickness, he was un¬ 
able to recover from his losses, and became the object of 
a princely charity. 

Nearly all errors of judgment, nearly all accidents, 
nearly all missteps in life are chargeable to lapses of 
mind, when, if the magnetism were only a positive force, 
an unbroken line of victory might be maintained. Ex¬ 
perience is a splendid school, but does not come to the 
aid of him who needs it most until severe losses have 
been endured. The farmer who, by hearing of misfor¬ 
tunes of his neighbors, has schooled himself against simi¬ 
lar experiences, and who is taken advantage of by the 
cheap magnetism of some traveling agent, wonders why 
he could permit himself to be fooled in this way. Were 
it not for such negative conditions among those who en¬ 
joy the training of city experience, the three-card-monte 
man, the green goods dealer and the bunco-steerer would 
not count as their prey so many men of supposed business 
sagacity. 

Forgetfulness is one form of lapse, but it is strictly an 
absence of memory, which need not indicate a lack of 
magnetism, although most persons who are magnetic have 
remarkably retentive memories. The true lapse appears 
in the vacuity of mind, where there is no tax placed upon 
the memory. Common illustrations of these are seen 
daily; and it is well known that the lapse is most frequent 
where the mind has the fewest cares. You may talk to a 
person in a voice loud enough to be heard rods away, 
and with enunciation that does not miss the full execution 
of a single syllable, yet the person addressed may know 
nothing of what you say, although there may be a pre¬ 
tense of having heard it all. Shame sometimes prevents 
the admission of such a lapse, so that the thought, with 
whatever of value it contains, is lost upon the air. Against 
this lapse the ordinary speaker is continually contending, 
and so common is it that he ejaculates, at the end of every 


EEALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 143 


idea, the interrogation, “See?” and waits for the re¬ 
sponse, “Yes,” before proceeding further. 

We recall the case of a lady who, in her desire to avoid 
the usual interrogatory ejaculations of “See?” “Don’t 
you know?” “Don’t you see?” “Do you understand?” 
uses a rising inflection, and asks the question merely by 
her intonations, and waits, before proceeding, until the 
person to whom she is speaking replies, “Yes.” This 
peculiar mannerism is an exact substitute for the ordi¬ 
nary expressions which we have just cited; and it is safe 
to say that, as her attention has never been called to it, 
she is entirely oblivious of it. The following will serve 
as an example: “We went down as far as the bridge, 
and saw the train coming (?), so we stopped for a few 
minutes until the train had passed (?). It was going 
very fast and made a great deal of smoke (?). We hur¬ 
ried on, and waited at the side of the bridge for a freight 
train to pass (?) on the other track.” At each place 
where the interrogation mark (?) appears in the fore¬ 
going quoted sentences the speaker raises her voice, uses 
a rising inflection, looks at the person addressed, waits 
until she receives some sign of acquiescence from the 
latter, and then goes on. If you ever have occasion to 
listen to a conversation carried on by two or more ladies 
during a social visit, you will notice that one of them 
continually reverses this mannerism by ejaculating 
“Yes,” by which she indicates that she is paying full at¬ 
tention to what is being said, and thus prevents the use 
of the inquiry, ‘ ‘ See ? ’ ’ which would otherwise be used. 

Persons who are busy mentally while engaged in the 
performance of duties often suffer vexing lapses. This is 
so common with some persons as to be almost a nervous 
disease. We recall the case of a carpenter who would lay 
down a tool in one part of a building on which he was 
working, and who would spend considerable time in 
hunting it up. It is true that skilled laborers can easily 


144 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


recall where each tool is placed, unless they are afflicted 
with this vacuity of mind. The lapse occurs more fre¬ 
quently with those who are not pursuing their usual 
vocations at the time. In the use of garden tools it is 
very common for the amateur tiller of the soil to lay 
down a hoe, a rake, or spade in some place, and one 
minute after not have the slightest idea where it was put. 
This fault is so common as to prove annoying in the life 
of almost every individual. But it is a habit that can 
be cured by means of the methods we teach. 

Exposure to colds and conditions that tend to lessen 
the vitality and bring on disease may occur during a 
lapse of the mind or a weakness of the will. A person 
who is clad for indoors will escort a friend out of the 
room, and stand talking at the open door, where a chill¬ 
ing atmosphere is quickly stealing away the vitality, yet 
has no mental knowledge of the great risk which is being 
run. Carelessness of this kind has filled many a grave 
where the health seemed perfect, and the person has 
passed through the days and weeks of suffering, making 
a brave fight for life, and dying without for a moment 
having realized that the fatality was due to this almost 
unaccountable lapse. So children are continually being 
exposed to the dangers of dampness, draughts and colds, 
and parents wonder why so many children are lost. 

Lapses of mind are dangerous in many cases and have 
led to misfortunes that might easily have been averted. 
There is no doubt that they are due and chargeable to 
negative magnetism, and could be prevented by the study 
and acquisition of positive magnetism. It seems to us 
that this is a duty. Not many years ago the practice be¬ 
gan of examining all applicants for railway positions, to 
ascertain if they were color-blind; and there is no doubt 
that the rejection of such as were so afflicted has led to 
greater security in the service. It is fully as easy to test 
the magnetic condition of men and women and their 


EEALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 145 


susceptibility to lapses. Nearly all the marine horrors 
and railroad holocausts would then be averted. 

Strangest among disasters are those that come to re¬ 
liable men, whose many years of experience should guard 
them against accident. This disposition to lapses comes 
with oft repeated monotony. An examination should be 
made once every year after a long period of service. 
Suppose the test in the time of first applying for a posi¬ 
tion should prove that the individual is not subject to 
lapses; then, after many years of faithful employment, 
another test is made, and the same person is found de¬ 
ficient in this regard; the only conclusion is that the con¬ 
stant attention to one line of duties has served to develop 
a state of negative magnetism, as any monotony will do. 
Hence comes the unaccountable accident to the old and 
reliable engineer or sea-captain; and most of the terrible 
calamities are attributable to them. 

What caused the engineer to continue his train at reck¬ 
less speed, contrary to custom and to signals, knowing 
that another train was due to pass in front of him on a 
cross-track? He was not a drinking man, nor had he 
shown evidence of mental weakening. He rode openly to 
his death, and carried over eighty souls with him. He 
ranked among the most experienced, the coolest and 
clearest-headed of the engineers of the line. What 
caused another, equally careful and skilful, engineer to 
neglect to take the siding as usual, to allow a regular 
train to pass, instead of which he went blindly on, and 
collided at fearful speed on a sharp curve ? What causes 
so many signaling men to give the wrong order, or to 
forget a plain duty? These must be lapses. 

The majority of the fearful wrecks at sea are due to 
these temporary vacuities of mind. It is otherwise un¬ 
accountable that the best masters of these ocean palaces 
should deliberately take their boats into positive danger. 
They do not commit the blunders thoughtfully, in an ef- 


146 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


fort to get greater speed, or shorter distance out of the 
course; for then the results might be attributed to mis¬ 
taken judgment. They do it thoughtlessly, stupidly, 
amazingly. When the question is put to one of them, if 
he has survived, the answer is: “I found myself out of 
the true course, but how I got there I do not know . 9 9 And 
this is true. 

The bridegroom-elect who slipped one cog in his mem¬ 
ory and went to his wedding one day late, was not as 
cordially welcomed as one Vho went on Tuesday, instead 
of Wednesday; in the latter case the bride forgave him, 
and made him comfortable for twenty-four hours, while 
in the former instance she married the best man, and left 
a cold meal for the late-comer. It seems that there are 
certain persons in whose minds a complete vacuum is 
formed for everything except the routine details of life, 
and these may go amiss. The actor who is unable to re¬ 
member his lines in the early days of a play is quite dif¬ 
ferent from the one who, after knowing them perfectly 
for a year or more, suddenly loses them; in the first in¬ 
stance it is a failure of the memory, in the other it is 
a lapse of mind. For this reason, when companies in such 
profession perform the same play for a year or more, the 
custom is to have prompters for the first few weeks, and, 
about a year later, to return the prompters. “Saying 
the same lines so frequently makes me lose them,” says 
a well-known actor. 

On the witness stand many an honest man and woman 
has been made out a liar, and so ignorant are judges of 
this phase of the mind that they often turn to the wit¬ 
nesses and severely rebuke them for contradicting them¬ 
selves. Reputable citizens are compelled to submit to in¬ 
sult, browbeating and chicanery from lawyers who are un¬ 
fit to be received in the plain homes of our land; they are 
tricked into wrong answers by misleading and foxy ques¬ 
tions; they are denied the right of continuous reply under 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 147 


cross-examination, being required to answer parts of 
things to suit the whims of attorneys, whose low animal 
cunning is palmed off as the current coin of ability; and 
thus hemmed in between a desire to tell the truth, a wish 
to obey the court, and a contempt for the lawyer who is 
nagging them, the most honest witnesses are led to say 
things in one breath and to deny them in another. When 
cases are tried and adjudged in a business-like manner 
and under the rules that would govern the settling of 
mercantile affairs, then the courts will be held in respect 
by the public. It is to the shame of the supposed system 
of American justice that nine cases out of every ten, 
ninety out of a hundred, nine hundred out of a thousand, 
are disposed of on technical grounds called law, wherein 
honesty is dwarfed or ignored. A board of directors of 
any institution, even one that involves millions of dollars, 
will satisfactorily transact an enormous amount of busi¬ 
ness in three hours, whereas courts of supposed justice, 
ignoring business principles, and sneering at common 
sense, will drag a fifty-dollar suit for three years. The 
uncertainty of trials, the petty brains of trickery, the 
flood of technicalities which men called judges childishly 
administer as evidence of wisdom, and the reverse of all 
rules of honest procedure, have made witnesses the target 
of doubt, stupidity and cheap cunning; hence the fact that 
trials smut and besmirch the reputations of honorable 
men and women through the conditions involved in men¬ 
tal lapses, need not excite wonder. The only prevention 
of this deplorable result is in the study of magnetism, as 
was seen in the perfect mastery that Henry Ward 
Beecher, during weeks of cross-examination, maintained 
over Judge Fullerton, who took rank as one of the most 
skillful and adroit examiners of his era. Never for a 
moment did that splendid genius of magnetism relax con¬ 
trol over his would-be tormenter. It was the battle of 
giants, with but one victor. 


148 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


So much distress and suffering are the consequences of 
lapses that life cannot be considered secure with one who 
is subject to them. Compromising bits of conduct, 
answers not intended, consents, agreements, contracts and 
transactions that involve irreparable loss, are due to 
lapses. Many an old man skilled in business matters by 
years of experience, has lost all the savings, all the wealth 
of a lifetime of accumulation, because, in some lapse of 
mind, he has sanctioned some foolhardy undertaking, or 
entered in a losing arrangement. In such ways old men 
are ruined. When asked why they made the errors, they 
reply that they do not know. 



Superstition destroys magnetism. 

This is the Twenty-ninth Principle. This is a fertile 
and abundantly fruitful subject for discussion; but, being 
so well understood by the public, very little need be said 
at this place. When life was not worth living, persons 
looked for death from almost any source; and, 
in some of the centuries, when better things should have 
been expected, very few died natural deaths. Mystery, 
uncertainty, violence and ignorance made a quartet that 
caused humanity to dance attendance on every kind of 
fear and apprehension. 

Natural phenomena puzzled the minds of all until 
science came in with her rational explanations; noises of 
rumbling thunder-clouds far away, or of unusual heav- 
ings of the ocean, were taken as sounds of approaching 
earthquakes, causing the utmost fright; the howling of 
the dog within a year after somebody had died was the 
forewamer of another death within the same community 
during the coming year, especially if the locality was 


BEALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 149 


thickly settled; the blood-red sky told of war in any de¬ 
gree of horror that the rich coloring depicted by its depth 
of hue, and the same was fulfilled in such periods as those 
when England entertained the conflicting hordes who 
called themselves the champions of the roses; the pres¬ 
ence of the black cat causes cold shivers to trace them¬ 
selves up and down the spinal column, because this visitor 
brought evil, and his going away was the harbinger of 
luck; and so on, through a hundred thousand volumes of 
description, we might proceed to unfold the vagaries of 
those dark centuries. 

That superstition is the master of most men and women 
in this day of enlightenment is too apparent to be denied. 
Few are exempt from its hypnotic influences, despite the 
soft denial of the fact. Look at any person whose mind 
passes into a lapse, and you will find one who is highly 
superstitious. Brooding over the latter will cause the 
former; and by this means a person may become self- 
hypnotized; for fear, monotony of thought, and brooding 
tend to develop negative magnetism. Superstitious 
business men sooner or later go under. In their affairs 
the keenest judgment is often called for, and transactions 
that require action one way or the other, involving mental 
decisions based on a careful weighing of the prospects of 
success, are guided by the cheap claptrap of superstition. 

When placed in the balance the element of chance or 
luck takes precedence of judgment. A splendid oppor¬ 
tunity for securing property, or of trading in some way, 
is allowed to go by because the day is Friday, or may be 
the thirteenth of the month. Actors religiously avoid 
managerial officers on Friday and Saturday, and crowd 
them on the first days of the week; it is no longer fear 
that deters them from signing contracts on unlucky days; 
it is a settled business habit, just as fixed in its nature as 
the path of a lamb around a certain stump. Young men 
in business often “toss up” in deciding what to do when 


150 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


in doubt, although they would soon learn that judgment 
is a good guide if they would train it to act for them, and 
they oftener allow some bit of superstition to control their 
action. 

The belief in a thousand and one details of daily con¬ 
duct hampers the life of many a well endowed man and 
woman. The fear that to do a certain act, or at a certain 
time, or in a certain way will invite maladies or disasters, 
is like a weight of lead about the neck, strangling the 
breath, and hindering all attempts at progress. A 
woman sums up well when she says: “A fool told me 
that to walk under a ladder meant death sure within the 
year. I discovered, alas! too late, that I walked under a 
ladder one morning, and for twelve months I was useless 
in my family, in my duties and in my studies. I was in a 
state of weakness all the time. When the year was ended 
I was relieved, and you may be sure that I gave that fool 
a piece of my mind for the suffering she had caused me.” 
This brief letter is a concise presentation of the case. 

The ablest business men and the most successful per¬ 
sons of either sex have openly and fully defied the claims 
of superstition. A New York merchant opened his store 
for the first time on a Friday, another on the thirteenth 
of a month, and Daniel Frohman postponed the opening 
day of one of his most successful plays from the eleventh 
to the thirteenth day, in order to challenge superstition; 
and all these enterprises were eminently prosperous. The 
true man need not go out of his way, either to challenge 
or to avoid the claims of superstition, unless he wishes to 
test their stupidity. 

There can be no magnetism of durable quality where 
there is a belief in any superstition, even one. Such be¬ 
lief forces the acts of the persons out of the direct line of 
good judgment, and destroys some part of the freedom of 
the will. If a single one of the many notions now preva¬ 
lent can be accepted as having weight, others will follow; 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 151 


for any hypnotic habit grows rapidly. “ Proof positive/ ’ 
so-called, that these notions have proved true, is nonsense 
sheer and simple. The weight of fear, based upon some 
apprehension of calamity, may break down the vitality 
and lead to dire consequences; but such result is due to 
self-hypnotism, inspired by the fear. This point is well 
illustrated in the invented superstition, which was origi¬ 
nated some years ago by three men whose purpose was to 
ascertain if negative magnetism could not be induced 
by mere fear. They asserted that six was a more fatal 
number than thirteen; that if six persons sat down 
together, one would die within a year and all within three 
years; and each cited cases without limit to prove the 
truth of their claim. This they delivered to a selected 
party of six women, whom they overtook as by accident. 
All were impressed; their belief was captured; they sepa¬ 
rated; one died within the year, the other five went into 
a decline, two more died in a few months, and it was only 
by the intervention of third parties that the others could 
be rescued from their fear. Superstitious belief is hypno¬ 
tic. It destroys magnetism. 


“I was a tree within an Indian vale, 

When first I heard the love-siclc nightingale 
Declare his passion; every leaf was stirred 
With the melodious sorrow of the bird, 

And when he ceased, the song remained with me. 

Men came anon, and felled the harmless tree, 
But from the memory of the songs I heard, 

The spoiler saved me from the destiny 
Whereby my brethren perished.” 



152 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


THE 

dark-section, OF THE mind 

THE MOST ABJECT FORM OF MENTAL SLAVERY 

E verybody has heard of the Dark of the 

Moon.—The Mind is susceptible of being illumi¬ 
nated by the vitality of the life about it; it also 
has its shadows, its twilight, and its dark phases. The 
only phase that is magnetic is that which we call 
bright. When in the shadows it is uncertain of itself, 
and lacks the aggressiveness that goes with power. 
Gradually drifting into the gloom of the twilight it sooner 
or later enters its dark phase; and it is then unable to 
see any horizon; its purposes are broken and erratic; 
there is no course in view; it drifts about under the driv¬ 
ing force of false beliefs and is useless to itself and to the 
world; and may in time either reach the asylum of the 
insane, or become a source of danger to itself and to 
others. 

In this section of the present Realm we shall endeavor 
to assist all victims of this condition into safety from its 
perils. 

Certain tests are given here to serve as guides to your 
own knowledge of yourself; and when you are satis¬ 
fied that your mind is in its dark phase, the methods of 
release from this abject bondage will be found in the 
newer division of this book known as the Realm of the 
Crystal Mind. You can all see the DARK OF THE 
MIND must of necessity be the opposite condition from 
the Crystal Mind. The two terms are self-explanatory. 
It is hardly necessary for us to say that the profes- 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 153 


sional hypnotist takes advantage of this DARK PHASE 
in order to find his most ready subjects. 

FEAR is first aroused as a test if this condition pre¬ 
vails. There is fear that comes from physical collapse, 
or what has the appearance of physical collapse; and this 
is secured through trickery. If the operator places the 
subject in a standing position facing him, and asks him to 
stand with the weight of the body on the back part of the 
heels with the feet together, and gently presses his hand 
against his chest, there is instantly a feeling of falling; 
this produces fear in a mind that is in its dark phase, and 
leads to hypnotic control if the subject is susceptible. If 
in conjunction with this trick, the operator seeks to 
weary the eyes of the subject by having him look up 
either at dancing fingers, or at some bright small object, 
there is a sense of sleepiness. Let these two sources of 
fear be combined, and it will be quickly seen if physical 
fear is present. 

The foregoing test applies only to the muscular control 
of the body and of the eyes; but has served the purpose 
of professional operators for generations. 

As opposed to these examples of physical fear, we have 
what is known as mental fear, and this may or not ex¬ 
press itself through the mood of worry, or a kindred 
feeling. This we have discussed fully. 

As the mind grows darker, there comes a more danger¬ 
ous mood which is recognized by the coming on of a 
feeling that something is PORTENDING, that something 
is about to happen that will bring trouble or reverses. 
This sense of something impending follows the person 
and tinctures every act and thought. It is this class that 
visit the fortune tellers, that have their palms read, and 
their futures mapped out for so much a sitting. From 
this class are obtained the recruits to every new cult, and 
to every abnormal belief. They are as often people of 
wealth and social standing as they are poor and un- 


154 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


fortunate in this worlds possessions. Great men have 
been known to fall under the spell of the DARK OF THE 
MIND. History tells of this mood in some of its most 
notable characters. 

The cure is in finding the Crystal Mind. 

The most serious phase of this realm is found in the 
climax of mental darkness, in the form of obsessions. An 
obsession is an absorbing belief that cannot be shaken by 
facts or circumstances. Men who are leaders in the 
world, who sway masses by their influence which gener¬ 
ally asserts itself by statements either in print or by¬ 
word of mouth, know their subjects; and while not one 
of them perhaps has ever practiced the art of hypnotism, 
as an art, they have controlled hundreds and thousands, 
and in some cases millions of people, by taking advan¬ 
tage of the obsessions that enslave them. It is true that 
an obsession is a slave master, and its subjects are the 
most abject of slaves. 

The mildest form of domestic obsession is the belief of 
the mother in the child; leaving the latter to bring itself 
up; and accomplishing what is known as “spoiling” it. 
No greater harm could be done the child than to allow it 
to bring itself up; to shape its own desires and their grati¬ 
fication; and to allow it to learn after bitter disappoint¬ 
ments that other human beings have rights. This ob¬ 
session of the mother who thinks the child could do or 
think nothing wrong, is that of mental blindness. The 
result is that the parent is under the unending influence 
of the offspring; will do anything for it, make any sac¬ 
rifice, waste energy and money, and eventually give up 
health and life in order that every whim and notion, 
wish and demand may be gratified. There are two gen¬ 
eral classes of criminals in the world: the inherited class 
and the “spoiled child” class. The latter become head¬ 
strong, vicious, quarrelsome and ungovernable; simply 
because they have always had their own way when 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 155 

young, and insist on overriding all those who stand in 
their way when they grow up. 

Diseased love is a common obsession;, and often leads 
to murder. It is generally confined to the male sex. The 
man or young man selects some one of the opposite sex 
for whom he displays his slimy affection; and becomes 
persistent and annoying, until the climax comes. This 
male person believes that his love is worth having, and 
cannot endure being repulsed. 

Bigotry has existed for countless generations. It is 
always offensive and always steeped in its own convic¬ 
tions. The bigot can be swayed by those who fall in 
lines with his views; but his belief cannot be shaken. 
There are some religions that begin in the tenderest years 
of a child’s life to teach it false doctrines, and these be¬ 
liefs are so deeply wrought into the blood that they are 
carried to the grave. Many of these victims grow to be 
successful men and women in other lines, but are always 
intolerable in religious matters. They are narrow and 
one-sided. Their minds are like diseased fruit that is 
healthy on one side only; with the taint of the decay 
permeating the whole of the flesh. 

Inherited obsessions are the most marked when they 
appear in the form of partisanship. This mental disease 
came out of the constant conspiracies of groups and sec¬ 
tions of people against the established government, lead¬ 
ing often to civil strife; and the thirty years’ war of the 
roses in England is the forerunner of the political parties 
now at strife in America, as well as in England. On 
analysis it is easy to trace this love of national conspira¬ 
cies to the desire to overthrow the prevailing govern¬ 
ment; for one political party has for its goal the destruc¬ 
tion of the other party; the party out of power seeking 
by every means, fair and foul, and foul in ninety per cent 
of the cases, to drive out of power the party that is 
ruling the country. A mind that is free from obsession 


156 


UNIVEESAL MAGNETISM 


would clearly see that the elected officials of the govern¬ 
ment were commissioned to perform the business of the 
nation in the same business-like manner that prevails 
among the employees of a great corporation. Look at 
the management of the business of the greatest railroad 
in the country; supposing the employees were to divide 
themselves into two conflicting groups, each seeking the 
destruction of the other employees, and spending most 
of their time in abuse and detraction of their fellow em¬ 
ployees, would it be safe to travel on that railroad? Yet 
that is the spectacle we behold of our American Congress, 
the elected employees of the people; and they retain 
their hold on office by hypnotizing the public. This con¬ 
dition cries out for correction. 

Step into any political meeting anywhere, if you wish 
the opportunity of studying whole crowds that are hyp¬ 
notized to the number of thousands; first by their own 
obsessions, and by the thrilling addresses of their orators 
who are trading on those obsessions. One form of this 
mental malady is akin to insanity; such as may be wit¬ 
nessed in the national nominating conventions where 
thousands cheer the mention of a favorite candidate for 
fifty-five minutes; while the next mentioned candidate is 
cheered for fifty-six minutes; and the opposing conven¬ 
tion cheers its chief hero for fifty-seven minutes, all of 
one variety. Men jump high into the air, throw their 
hats higher, tear the coats from each other, and pre¬ 
sent a picture that would make bedlam look like a Sunday 
School session. The hypnotic operator makes his sub¬ 
jects do all these antics, but one or two at a time. The 
controlling influence of the great convention does the 
same things by the power of excitement that displaces 
mental intelligence. 

Given an effective speaker, an audience of partisans 
obsessed by their belief in the necessity of political 
parties, another party to attack, and a lot of falsehoods 


EEALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 157 


as the munitions of the assault, and you have the most 
pronounced evidence of mass hypnotism in existence. 

Party votes in Congress are always examples of hyp¬ 
notism swaying men of supposed intelligence in the 
name of party necessity. All members of all parties are 
hired employees of the nation; they have no other busi¬ 
ness than to perform the work of the government, yet 
when a measure comes to a vote these hired employees 
line themselves on sides, fight each other like cats and 
dogs but in a mental sense, and quarrel, bicker, make 
venomous attacks on the honesty of each other, and 
hold up the business they were sworn to perform, all in 
the hope that one party may destroy another party. 
What kind of service would these employees render the 
great railroad if they divided themselves into two warlike 
groups and fought for advantage, giving ninety-five per 
cent of their time and effort to their own greed for office, 
and their struggle for re-election, while the railroad re¬ 
ceived only the remaining five per cent of their time and 
effort? 

If you cannot see that partisanship is all wrong; that 
the re-election of office holders is all wrong; that parties 
are nothing more than conspiracies; and that the business 
of the government should be conducted in a business-like 
manner; then you are laboring under this same obsession 
that keeps you in the hypnotic class, and out of the mag¬ 
netic class. Nor will you ever pass from one to the other 
until your brain is clear enough to recognize these vital 
facts. 

The mind grows darker as obsessions become free to 
take full possession of it. The really dangerous stage is 
reached when crime and violence to others follow this 
disease. Thousands of murderers have testified that they 
have been compelled to commit crime by the evil in¬ 
fluence of others over them; and the subject has been 
much discussed by criminologists. Whether the claim 


158 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


is fully true or not, it is a fact that a person may readily 
become self-hypnotized by an obsession. Religious fanat¬ 
ics are numerous who offer up human sacrifices to their 
gods, not only in savage lands but in intelligent America. 
Many children have paid this penalty at the hands of ob¬ 
sessed parents. In like manner, the refusal of a certain 
cult to call in the services of doctors when members of 
their families are critically ill has compelled legislatures 
to enact laws making this homicide or manslaughter; in 
some States punishable as misdemeanors; but the fact is 
recognized that it is a crime. 

Other religious cults devote themselves to self injury, 
even in our own America, while still others perform 
idiotic rites; showing the massed hypnotic influence that 
is able to sway thousands. 

BRAIN STORM is the final climax, this side of actual 
permanent insanity, that an obsession reaches. 

It appears in individuals who are driven by hatred, 
envy, suspicion, or jealousy, to engage in crime, generally 
murder, and who are in an hypnotic mood while under 
its influence. Juries excuse this crime unless it is exces¬ 
sively brutal. The law says that a man who permits 
himself to get drunk knowing that he may do some act 
of violence, is not entitled to acquittal, for it was his duty 
to guard himself against the irresponsibility of intoxi¬ 
cation; so the same principle applies to a man or woman 
who permits an obsessing idea to dethrone the reason even 
long enough to kill another. 

If some woman runs out into the streets screaming 
that a man has attacked her, whether she does this for 
revenge as has been the case numerous times, or is justi¬ 
fied in making the charge, if the incident occurs in cer¬ 
tain States, a mob is quickly formed and the culprit, 
whether innocent or not, is summarily lynched. The mob 
is controlled by the hypnotic power of the obsession; 
it does not dethrone reason, for the rioters are as sane 


BEALM OF THE ESTATE OF HELL 159 


then as before and after the event; bnt it takes the place 
of intelligent thinking, and drives the mind to its non¬ 
thinking state. The match that fires the magazine of 
powder is no more dangerous than the suggestion that 
fires the mob. One county in the middle West has been 
able to defy the law of the State and of the nation; and 
could if put to the test defy the law of all creation up to 
the point of absolute extermination of every man and 
woman living in it, simply because it is under the hyp¬ 
notic sway of passion, and lives in a perpetual brain 
storm. 

Wherever riots occur, no matter for what purpose, 
there we find this mental slavery. There can be no 
civilization under such conditions. 

It is not always the low classes that are swept into 
massed criminals by an obsession. The fanatic crowds at 
ball games lose all control over themselves; and it is 
only the thinnest veneer of self-control that holds them 
in check from throwing thousands of bottles and other 
missiles at the umpires and opposing clubs. They are 
temporarily obsessed and rendered mentally deranged 
by the desire for victory; just as the fighting Arabs con¬ 
tort their bodies in battle to harmonize with their con¬ 
torted minds, when they become flying windmills in 
their plunge against the enemy. The snake dance and 
other barbaric displays of students through the public 
streets of a city, ending in riot and destruction of prop¬ 
erty and danger to the public, are massed forms of hyp¬ 
nosis setting aside all intelligent control of minds that 
are supposed to be a grade above the savage intellects. 

It is necessary to come out of the obsessed class in order 
to come out of the hypnotic hemisphere and enter that 
of the magnetic control of others. 


SCULPTORS 



‘^HISEL in hand stood a sculptor boy 
^ With his marble block before him; 

And his face lit up with a smile of joy, 

As an angel dream passed o’er him. 

He carved that dream on the yielding stone 
With many a sharp incision; 

In heaven’s own light the sculptor shone — 
He had caught that angel vision. 

“Sculptors of life are WE, as we stand, 

With our lives uncarved before us; 

Waiting the hour when at God’s command, 
Our life dream passes o’er us. 

Let us carve it then on the yielding stone, 
With many a sharp incision; 

Its heavenly beauty shall be our own — 

Our lives, that angel vision.” 



(160) 


REALM FOUR 


B UT we’ve a page, more glowing and more bright, 
On which our friendship and our love to write; 
That these may never from the soul depart, 

We trust them to the memory of the heart. 

There is no dimming, no effacement there. 

Each new pulsation keeps the record clear; 

Warm, golden letters all the tablets fill, 

Nor lose their lustre till the heart stands still.” 


The Estate of Peace 

IN THE 

WHITE SUNLIGHT OF EXISTENCE 

“DUT when the moon their hollow lights, 

^ And they are swept by balms of spring, 

And in their glens, on starry nights, 

The nightingales divinely sing; 

And lovely notes, from shore to shore, 

Across the sounds and channels pour — 

Oh! then a longing like despair 
Is to their farthest caverns sent; 

For surely once, they feel, we were 
Parts of a single continent! 

Now round us spreads the watery plain — 

Oh, might our marges meet again!” 

( 161 ) 


THE WHITE SUNLIGHT 


«S!MS» 

‘LJAD we no hope 

* * Indeed beyond the zenith and the slope 
Of yon gray blank of sky, we might be faint 
To muse upon eternity’s constraint 

Round our aspirant souls. But since the scope 
Must widen early, is it well to droop 
For a few days consumed in loss and taint? 

O pusillanimous heart, be comforted, — 

And like a cheerful traveler, take the road, 
Singing beside the hedge.” 



‘T LEAVE behind me the elm-shadowed square 
* And carven portals of the silent street, 

And wander on with listless, vagrant feet 
Through seaward-leading alleys, till the air 

Smells of the sea, and straightway then the care 
Slips from my heart, and life once more is sweet. 
At the lane’s ending lie the white-winged fleet. 

O restless Fancy, whither wouldst thou fare? 
Here are brave pinions that shall take thee far — 
Gaunt hulks of Norway; ships of red Ceylon; 

Slim-masted lovers of the blue Azores! 

’Tis but an instant hence to Zanzibar, 

Or to the regions of the Midnight Sun; 

Ionian isles are thine, and all the fairy shores!” 
( 162 ) 




“ A CLOUD lay cradled near the setting sun, 

A gleam of crimson tinged its braided snow; 
Long had I watched the glory moving on 
O’er the still radiance of the lake below. 
Tranquil its spirit seemed and floateq slow! 

Even in its very motion there was rest; 

While every breath of eve that chanced to blow 
Wafted the traveller to the beauteous west. 
Emblem, methought, of the departed soul! 

To whose white robe the gleam of bliss is given, 
And by the breath of mercy made to roll 
Right onward to the golden gates of Heaven, 
Where to the eye of faith it peaceful lies, 

And tells to man his glorious destinies.” 



UCCESS in life, whether in the fields of mind, of 
business, or of body; whether in the acquisition 
of knowledge, of happiness, or property, or of 
power, is directly -dependent upon a sustained 
elasticity of temperament and the buoyancy of 
hope. Fear depresses and handicaps. Courage is needed 
to meet the contingencies of battle; and it must be the 
full, round courage of a broad nature, an unfaltering de- 

163 











164 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


termination to win all honest victories that can possibly 
be achieved in the range of one’s powers. 

We are now entering the estate of peace. By this we 
do not mean that we are about to retire from the great 
battlefield of life. On the contrary, we seek to put an 
end to the warring factions that rage within our own 
selves, to gather the millions of scattered forces, enlist 
them all under one grand marshalling, assert control 
over them, and, wielding a united power, lead them on to 
success. The greatest victories are achieved by those 
armies whose purpose is a unit. Man ordinarily is a 
collection of untamed and widely dispersed energies, over 
which he has never sought, except in rare instances, to" 
wield the master’s wand. He does not know what is 
meant by the advice to conquer himself, nor is he aware 
of the tremendous forces that are possessed by him, 
awaiting organization and use. 

As may be seen by referring to the preceding realm, 
the chaotic condition of most magnetic persons prevents 
their use of the powers with which they are endowed. 
They are not at peace with themselves. They possess 
energy enough to wield a great influence over the lives 
of others, and this could very readily be turned to mag¬ 
netism of a positive character; but they feel too much 
the impulsive force of this energy, as though it were 
leading them always astray. They must have excite¬ 
ment. A day of rest, an hour of recuperation is to them 
a dull period; the tour is slow; life is not worth living, 
unless they can be always on the go; and thus their 
vitality runs wild and wastes itself. 

There are two classes of persons who enjoy peace 
within themselves; one is that large division of mankind 
who are almost devoid of magnetism; the other is a rather 
small portion, who possess positive powers of magnetism, 
which they control. The former do not always get peace, 
for it seems that when they are in a struggle to shake off 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 165 


the weight of influence from outside, that crushes them 
always to earth, they are in the agonies of suffering. The 
lower strata of men and women, those who are utterly de¬ 
void of magnetism, are the dullest and most stupid of hu¬ 
manity. They are always poor, and are not wide enough 
awake to wonder at it. They labor and toil on, willing 
to be led or driven, and are molded by the influences 
of others. You see them in the lowest classes of con¬ 
tented workmen and women. 

Give to the under folks any magnetism, even if it is far 
below the line where the positive force begins, and then 
the torment is inaugurated. Then commences the strug¬ 
gle to arise out of the humble estate into one toward 
which the finger of ambition points the way. Discontent 
with present conditions, coupled with the handicap that 
checks progress, indicates such magnetic qualities as, 
when free, will revolutionize the life that seeks to better 
itself. Out of their rank have come all, or nearly all, of 
the supreme minds and courageous leaders of the world. 
The roll of fame is crowded full of names taken from 
humble conditions and forced to the front by inherent 
energy. It is not true that all who are discontented rise 
to higher planes of life; most of them might, if they 
knew how to marshal the powers they possess; but about 
one in ten thousand makes up the mind to go ahead, and 
then goes ahead. Resolute will never fails; it carries its 
owner to the loftiest plane of success, no matter how 
low may be the estate out of which he is taken. 

Conflicting emotions, restlessness and discontent, if 
they are aimed at the lowly condition of unsuccess, if they 
complain of the meaner stratum in which they are com¬ 
pelled to exist, if they scorn the past and look always 
to the future, seeking an upward course to better oppor¬ 
tunities, these are sure indications of a developing and 
growing magnetism. Yet they force their possessors to 
live in confusion; there is no peace; the energies are not 


166 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


mastered, and it is to them that this course of training 
will come with tremendous force, leading them up out 
of their vale of conflict. Of such persons about one 
in ten thousand rises by sheer power of resolution, shap¬ 
ing their destiny by the genius of an undaunted will. 
Let us see if more than one in that number can be helped. 

We will leave the hopelessly stupid class to themselves. 
As has been said, they include the humblest of toilers, 
those who seem contented with food, clothing and shelter. 
A very small proportion of the richer or higher social 
classes may be said to belong to this rank; they are the 
sons or daughters of wealth, who are not full-witted, 
who are unable to think for themselves, and for whom 
the courts appoint guardians. It is always true that any 
such person may be wonderfully assisted in overcoming 
such negative conditions if once they may be made to 
take an interest in the study and training of magnetism. 
They rarely care for self-improvement, however. 

The most numerous class of persons who are subject to 
conflict within themselves are not those who are discon¬ 
tented with their present rank and are always looking 
up, but those who are discontented with everything, and 
are looking down. Let us fully understand the distinc¬ 
tion between the two. Both possess magnetism that 
might be made positive if the energies within were 
brought into peace. The first class is on the rising path, 
with magnetism increasing and the positive vitality com¬ 
ing to them, if they are able to control themselves; and 
from their ranks come the greatest men and women. They 
are in conflict with their conditions, but they are looking 
up to some higher hope. The other class consists of those 
who are already endowed with positive magnetism, or who 
have had it; but, being unable to marshal these forces, 
and to control their use, they have allowed themselves 
to come under their sway. They are nervous, excitable, 
irritable, restless, and always at war within themselves. 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 167 


They are beings run away with by splendid forces which 
they do not choose, or cannot acquire the energy, to con¬ 
trol. 

Out of such class come the greatest sufferers. They 
constitute those of whom we wrote in the preceding 
realm of this study. It is not easy to know that you are 
equipped for the best heritage of earth; that in mental 
endowments, or in the possibility of acquiring them, you 
take rank with the first classes of mankind; that you 
were intended by nature for a position far above that 
which you occupy; that you realize that there are within 
you the magnificent forces on which you should ride to 
the grandest success; yet that all is conflict, confusion 
and waste. Your magnetism, once positive, is now chaos. 
You see no longer the outlines of that highway over which 
you had hoped to travel many years ago. All within is at 
war; you are restless. 

From this class you must take the speediest departure 
possible. It is the realm of distraction. You are already 
irritable. Many a man and woman has acquired in this 
incipient malady the seeds of mental breakdown, of the 
direst disaster. You are given to worrying; this en¬ 
genders unhappiness. Misery is about you, colored by 
the hue of your own orbs. Restless in quietude; reading 
anything and everything to keep down the stormy con¬ 
flict; seeking something new to satisfy your unquenchable 
thirst; arising in the morning without taste for the day’s 
duties; going to bed at night, unhappy because the day 
has been wasted; this routine of half misery and hectic 
pleasures is taking you down grade very rapidly. It is 
hoped that you do not belong to the class we have de¬ 
scribed. If you do, turn about; marshal your distracted 
and warring forces, and transform defeat into victory. 
We will help you. More than that, we will guarantee to 
you the highest rewards of absolute success, from no 
other source than in the very pages of the present volume. 


168 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


You should first ascertain if you belong to this class. 
Remember they are the restless persons who have had, or 
may have, some positive magnetism, which is running to 
waste. It is a dangerous class, for the reason that its 
end is generally disasterous. The excitement that brings 
no satisfaction; the unrest that knows no peace; these 
are fast sapping the vitality of heart and brain and 
nerves. It is a hard class to get out of. You cannot leave 
it as easily as you think. But it is necessary that you 
shake all such entanglements out of your life if you ever 
wish to find solid happiness on earth. Therefore you 
should talk honestly with yourself, and decide whether 
or no you belong to this class. 

Your chances are better if you are in the discontented 
underling rank, for that has been the training school of 
greatness from time immemorial. By underling is not 
necessarily meant that you are poor, but that your pos¬ 
itive magnetic forces are yet in process of formation. 
In the other class you may have now, or have had at 
some previous time, such vitality; but it has gone to 
waste; or, being without mastery, it is on the wane; and 
to retrace your course is like backing up hill with a team 
of unruly horses. In the discontented underling class 
you feel the impulse of unborn energies, which need an 
intelligent head to lead them on. From the standpoint 
of a conceited imagination this class is the least desir¬ 
able of all to be found in, but from the better viewpoint 
of the chances of progress, and the attainment of success, 
it is by far the best class. If you are in it, all you need 
is the guiding help of such a course of training as this 
book furnishes in order to help you to rise in the world. 

We now see four classes spread out before us in the 
field of our study and examination. Highest above all 
is that which contains the few but the great men and 
women, not always famous, but powerful in their influ¬ 
ences over the rest of mankind; and this is the magnetic 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 169 


class. Next in rank are the discontented underlings, 
whose fate it seems to have been these many centuries 
to send about one in every ten thousand of their number 
into the higher class through the operation of magnetism 
acquired by energy of will and an unfaltering determin¬ 
ation of purpose. Third in order are the restless, chaotic 
individuals, who are partly successful in life, who take 
rank, socially, perhaps above some of the others, but 
whose magnetism, being uncontrolled, is running to 
waste. Finally, at the bottom of the scale, are the stupid, 
contented classes, who have no magnetism of a positive 
character, who never had and never will; they serve the 
other strata of humanity. 

To which one of these four classes do you belong? It 
is perhaps of some importance to settle in your own mind 
this problem; for your method of procedure may be some¬ 
what varied by the answer. More will be said of this 
later on. It is our duty, at the present juncture, to go 
directly to work upon the course of training, which is 
now at hand. Avoid superficial reading and skimming 
practice. Get down deep into the theme, and make it 
the most important duty of life for the time being. It 
masters everything else; it leads to all the success you 
may ever achieve; and why should it not receive the 
highest recognition in this world ? As Charles Spurgeon 
said: “If there can be such a thing as having but one 
great accomplishment, let it be that which will accom¬ 
plish the most; its name is personal magnetism.” 


“ ‘Let there he light!* said God; and forthwith Light 
Ethereal, first of things, quintessence pure, 
Sprung from the deep; and, from her native east, 
The journey through the airy gloom began, 
Spher*d in a radiant cloud.** 



170 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 



Normal consciousness is normal magnetism. 

This is the Thirtieth Principle. It is perhaps a some¬ 
what technical proposition, but may be made clear by 
a little explanation. The word, consciousness, means the 
power of the faculties to recognize conditions, impres¬ 
sions, ideas, thoughts and transactions. Here we see the 
clearness of that force in life which is known as intelli¬ 
gence. Some persons retain more than others, but it 
may be merely the bulk of accumulation in the memory, 
most of which would do as much good as the shelf in 
books. Worms of that class are stupified by the weight 
of facts they never absorbed, and are not magnetic. 

The wisest man is not he who has stored away the 
greatest number of facts in his memory, but he who recog¬ 
nizes the most of what is going on about him., and is able 
to turn the largest proportion of it to his account. The 
book-worm wriggles among people day in and day out, 
or walks amid the sumptuous wealth of nature, seeing 
nothing, hearing nothing, feeling nothing, appreciating 
nothing, because he is groping in his brain among the 
numberless facts that are jammed into it like shoestrings 
in a valise; the brooks run on in merry laughter; the 
birds sing their melodies of glee and plaint; the trees 
r.ock to and fro on the cradle of the breeze, swaying in 
lullabies to the tunes that mother earth first sang when 
she hushed her children to their primeval rest; the clouds 
float by like argosies in seas of blue; the sublime painter 
of earth and sky outspreads before the gaze the richest 
colorings that ever sprang from the soul of genius; yet 
this wise mortal is blind and deaf to it all. 

In every day’s experience there are thousands of details 
transpiring, out of which a little at least may be drawn 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 171 


into one’s life and absorbed into one’s being. The indi¬ 
vidual who does not recognize this is poor indeed. 
Counted wise, he is ignorant. His consciousness is not 
active. He may be a member of the lowest stratum of 
humanity, contented and void of all positive magnetism. 
The meaning of consciousness, then, is the power of rec¬ 
ognizing life in and out of self. It cannot be disasso¬ 
ciated from magnetism, for it is dependent upon this 
force. Normal consciousness is normal magnetism. It 
is the dividing line between negative and positive mag¬ 
netism. Below this line there comes the possibility of 
lapses and hypnotic control; above it, the possibility of 
self-mastery, the marshalling of the forces of life, suc¬ 
cess and peace. When you are below the normal plane 
of consciousness, or clear recognition of life in and about 
you, then you are on the negative side of magnetism; 
when you are above such normal plane, you are on the 
positive side. 



Life is a mass of energies. 

This is the Thirty-first Principle. These energies are 
so numerous and so powerful, each in itself, that it is 
difficult to keep an account of them or their operations. 
They seem to permeate the body from head to foot. The 
physical forces are of all kinds, capable of executing 
great deeds of prowess or small details of the most deli¬ 
cate fineness. They cannot be studied without exciting 
admiration and wonder. Nothing more amazing is 
known in this line of miracle, when subjected to analysis, 
than the varied ability of the muscles to throw a mis¬ 
sile of any weight to any distance within a given range. 
For an engine to do this, or a cannon to hurl its pro¬ 
jectile, there must be the summary of brain-power in 


172 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


directing tlie details, the adjustment of the quantity and 
force of the power, the resistance of the machine, the 
angle of elevation, the observation of distance, and a 
long prior investigation of the laws by which each may 
be instantly controlled. Man, if new upon the earth to¬ 
day, would require centuries to accomplish so much; yet, 
in his own muscular energy, he soon reaches such end. 
This is but one of a million uses of the power that is 
lodged within the body. 

Then the energies of the nervous system are still more 
amazing. They run the longest gamuts, from the dainti¬ 
est and most exquisite impressions to those wild bursts 
of power that the actors of the heroic stage have so 
often loved to imitate. The varieties of nervous force 
are multitudinous. It is true that they sway the muscles, 
but they are always lost in muscular exuberance when 
the nerves are not in full command. They have a power 
that is not seen at all times, a reserve energy that compels 
the body to do work the extent of which defies all the 
computed rules of expenditure. That they are too often 
weak is a fact that should not be tolerated while man is 
able to give them training. Behind the emotions and 
passions, back of the voice, the heart and all expression 
of the faculties, the nervous system stands ready to en¬ 
hance or belittle their uses, as its own condition may be 
weak or strong. 

There are multiplied and complex energies of the mind, 
so many, indeed, that they are beyond computation. It 
would be needless to attempt their classification in this 
place. The mind has five channels of communication 
with the world, through which it receives and sends 
those impressions that constitute intelligent existence. 
Each of these channels represents a world of power to 
and from which it continually runs. Sight excels all 
others, and its value is so great that the greater share 
of life goes out with it. By its operation there may be 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 173 


communicated to the life of man much that affects it in 
numberless directions; that which appals, pleases, up¬ 
lifts or destroys; that which educates, conceals, deceives 
or reveals, that which stimulates to love or hate, trans¬ 
forms the soul or dethrones the reason; in fact, there is 
no limit to the scope of the mind’s energies as affected 
by this one channel alone. Then the other senses play 
their parts. Beyond them are realms of invention, fancy, 
contemplation, and hundreds else. All these are living, 
powerful energies belonging to the conscious mind. In 
addition to that sphere of thought, the hidden or sub¬ 
conscious faculty deals in its own magic, to solve which 
the philosopher would sacrifice all his other glories. Yet 
our present day research is fast penetrating amazing 
depths of this mysterious power-giant. 

The fourth world of energies is that of the soul, that 
moral force that is kept in the background in the majority 
of lives. It concerns itself with the life that follows 
death. The many varieties of energies of which it is 
composed are less understood because they are not usually 
brought to the front, are not dissected in the analysis of 
life, and do not obtain the culture in this existence that 
is best calculated to develop them. If the soul lives at 
all, it is a complex and fully endowed being; not a mass 
of spirit essence, but an embodiment of character, energy, 
intelligence and executive ability. All this seems foreign 
to you, perhaps, as you never have thought of the soul 
apart from the mind. To you the two seem inseparable; 
for when sleep or unconsciousness overwhelm the facul¬ 
ties, you have no sensation of the soul that might indicate 
its presence or existence. 

il ln early days methought that all must last; 

Then 1 beheld all changing, dying, fleeting; 

But though my soul now grieves for much that’s past, 

And changeful fortunes set my heart oft beating, 

I yet believe in mind that all will last, 

Because the old in new I still am meeting.” 


174 


UNIVEESAL MAGNETISM 



Left to nature, all energies are at war and in confusion. 

This is the Thirty-second Principle. It may be asked, 
why nature produces war and confusion. She has always 
done that. When she supplies the forces that work out 
the ends of existence, all is not done. We trimmed a 
grape vine to-day. It was in a fearful tangle. The 
fruit was well set, but the tendrils were choking its 
growth. The branches that should have been pinched 
back to a few leaves, had fallen down toward the ground, 
and were winding themselves around the trunk, three in a 
snare, or else were becoming inextricably confused with 
other parts. A man who had a vineyard that was neg¬ 
lected year after year, received no fruit whatever; his 
neighbor, who gave constant and skilful care to his 
vines, plucked large and luscious bunches year in and 
year out. 

Nature furnishes impulses, God gives them a few laws 
to avoid destruction or extermination, and man’s duty is 
to train these impulses under such laws. Left entirely to 
nature, man himself would become a hapless savage. De¬ 
prived entirely of nature, he would be a sickly model, 
devoid of life. The wild grape, like the wild cherry, is 
too sour and crude for use; fed on the impulses of nature, 
it becomes a beautiful product of culture under the guid¬ 
ing hand of man; made apart from these impulses, it must 
be a thing of artifice, constructed of wood, and painted 
in imitation of that which is genuine. 

All these things are true of those energies which consti¬ 
tute human life. The fixed routine of functional exist¬ 
ence follows the same laws, whether in vegetation or in 
the animal species, as of blood circulation, breathing and 
digestion; and around these three chief operations all the 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 175 


common faculties of plant and body find their divergence, 
in which they reproduce the sum total of ancestral traits. 
Without a direct intelligence to guide them they grow 
wildly; they run to waste, and suffer much in so doing. 
It would seem that nature is exceedingly cruel in all 
directions, were she responsible for the anguish that is 
endured on her account. Her children are born in pain, 
and die in pain. The short lives of birds, animals and 
fish that become the prey of others are too brief to serve 
any use; yet there is less suffering in being devoured than 
in being left to die from age. Follow any animal you 
will, in your mind at least, and note the long days and 
weeks of pain in the forest during that struggle which 
precedes death from starvation. 

We see the birds about us and envy them their happy 
freedom, but we never inquire what becomes of them. 
Youth is full of play and cheerful glee in the merry ef¬ 
forts to use their wings from tree to tree; but age is one 
long waiting for death through the processes of slow star¬ 
vation. There is no palatial couch on which the king 
of the jungle lays himself down to final rest amid the 
soothing attentions of love or the anaesthetics of science; 
when he can no longer roam at will for food, when the 
bones are stiff with age, the blood thin with lack of nu¬ 
trition, and all the impluses of that once noble frame are 
smothered in decreptitude, he is a thing of dependence on 
the meagre charity of his consorts, a tottering temple of 
despair; and, against the driveling out of life in the 
months that must follow, the speeding bullet of the hun¬ 
ter is an act of mercy. 

We may praise nature all we will, for she is grand; 
but she is helpless. Long eras passed while she waited 
for the coming of man to take charge of her runaway 
forces. So, in the body of man himself, there are these 
millions of energies running to waste; engines that have 
no equal in power for their size; wires that carry enor- 


176 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


mous loads of vitality; a heart whose expenditure of 
force is far in excess of all calculations in the world of 
mechanics; a brain that originates and propels volumes 
of power, and countless others, large and small. Behind 
every faculty there are millions of infinitesimal forces, 
whose collective vitality has enormous power. Except 
in the performance of the vegetable functions of breath¬ 
ing, circulation and respiration, all this energy runs to 
waste in the ordinary life; yes, in the extraordinary life, 
a large share of the time. Few and rare are the men and 
women who are able to assume mastery over them. Soi ie 
claim to possess the genius of generalship at once, off¬ 
hand, without knowledge of the armies placed under 
their command, and without cognizance of the goal to¬ 
ward which they are tending. As well might a raw re 
cruit be given charge of the great armies of the nation. 


i 


33 k 




Peace dispels confusion. 

This is the Thirty-third Principle. By peace is meant 
the cessation of internal war, as has been previously 
stated. This quietude is the earliest step in the story of 
self-command. We do not fall back upon the old homily, 
that he who is able to conquer himself is greater than he 
who taketh a city. That is good enough. But our simile 
is closer to the facts in the case. To conquer one’s self 
implies that one’s own life is at war with its head, or its 
brain. This is the equal of saying to Wellington: “You 
are at the head of the flower of the English army. This 
army is at variance with you; it is your enemy, and should 
be your friend; go ahead, conquer your own army, and 
then strike for the enemies of your country.” This 
sounds well. 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 177 

On the other hand it would have been closer to the true 
facts to have said to a general, whose soldiers were in the 
same relative condition as those of man as a human be¬ 
ing: “You are at the head of millions of the best fighters 
a commander ever saw. These fighters are not waging 
war against your outside enemy, nor against you, for 
your existence is the sum total of theirs; but they are in 
confusion. Some of them are fighting among themselves; 
some are at a standstill, not knowing which way to go, 
what to do, or why they have being at all; others are on 
the run, racing at hazard, without guide, and expending 
all their energies for naught.” Now, it is not true that 
man must first conquer himself in the sense that the 
general must either whip or subdue his own individuality, 
or in the sense that he must march in victory against 
his supporting army; but it may be said to be true that 
he must assert his authority, and hold his fighters in 
subjection to his will. 

So much is certain. Peace in the ranks, the end of dis¬ 
sensions; the checking of retreat or runaways; the aboli¬ 
tion of all the influences that breed confusion; these are 
the first essentials of conquest. But it is not to be a con¬ 
quest of self. We teach mastery as a quality of grand¬ 
eur; we do not teach humility. Man must rise and tower 
above his own forces, as did Caesar and Alexander; and, 
with obedient followers, he should make his conquests 
felt abroad. Peace comes from a desire to have peace. 
It does not require much more than knowledge, in a case 
of this kind, to bring about the results which are really 
sought. Life is motion. Along the complicated high¬ 
ways, if we knew the road that we ought to take, it re¬ 
quires no greater effort to march that way than any 
other. We cite this illustration as evidence of the ease 
with which a person may change plans and purposes, 
and thereby reach goals quite opposite from those at 
first sought; so wonderful a power is knowledge. Train- 


178 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


ing the vine is less trouble than unsnarling its tangled 
growth; it is more quickly done, and the fruitage is better 
beyond all comparison. 



The mere reading of magnetic thoughts may change 
the whole current of life. 

This is the Thirty-fourth Principle. Here is the pivo¬ 
tal point of culture. A man has attended a lecture; he 
does nothing but listen; he catches bits of information 
which are new to him; the manner of delivery may have 
been inspiring, and the language elevating; but the facts 
are the things that he takes away. That night he falls 
asleep amid his ponderings over the new idea; in the 
morning he awakes, and is still delving into the possibili¬ 
ties that open up to him in new avenues of progress; dur¬ 
ing the day they linger about his work, his duties, 
his other thoughts; and so on, for weeks and 
months, they continue to impress him. He is a changed 
man. 

We walk one road or another; or, to take the water for 
our means of illustration, we sail in one current or 
another, in one path through the ocean to a certain port, 
or otherwise if we seek another harbor. The captain who 
steers his prow toward the north coast of Ireland, might 
have gone as easily to the English Channel or to the 
Canaries; it was merely the combination of knowledge 
and purpose. The energies of the boat, its machinery, 
furnace, engine and steering apparatus obey his com¬ 
mand as well when making one port as another. The 
sailing vessel is the creature of other influences than its 
own; it must yield to the whims of wind and storm; man 
of negative magnetism is buffeted about, but when his 
power is positive, the engines that propel his course are 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 179 


all within him, and are subject to his will. Then knowl¬ 
edge of the true way, and a purpose to pursue, are his 
chief agents of success. 

So much for our illustration. The same law holds true 
as to the effect of reading as of hearing. Fine efforts do 
in fact dress things well; but after all the mariner of life 
needs facts. We must be dreadfully in earnest. The 
captain astray on the high seas, whose compass is broken, 
and who has no means of making his calculations; or who, 
being cast a long distance out of his course, finds himself 
in waters that are unknown, needs information; he asks 
the coming voyager for knowledge; facts, and nothing but 
facts, will serve him. There is coal enough to make port; 
the machinery is intact; the engines work splendidly; the 
ship steers aright, but the pathway of the ocean has been 
lost, and a friendly craft is sighted. Now the captain is 
in a position to obtain the needed guidance. He is after 
knowledge. Do you think he cares for a flowery display 
of rhetoric, for fine language, for the dress and garniture 
of words'? Does he need exalted, lofty, inspiring descrip¬ 
tion? No. He wishes plain facts—the one thing that 
alone can bring him safely into port. 

There is often a vast amount of magnetism in a fact 
that comes at the right moment in the juncture between 
victory and defeat. Napoleon lost Waterloo because the 
Prussian army was allowed to join Wellington. He had 
the latter well under defeat, and saw the star of destiny 
rising over the horizon, when Blucher broke through the 
forests and came to the rescue of the English. Grouchy 
took the wrong road. With French forces enough at his 
command, he went out to meet the Prussians. At the 
juncture of two roads he was in doubt whether to take 
that to the right or that to the left. Had the knowledge 
been vouchsafed him, a single word, teeming with magne¬ 
tism, would have changed the destinies of Europe. Dis¬ 
play, style, ornaments of speech, elaboration of delivery, 


180 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


all pale before the power of the word that carries the 
precious freight of a fact. 

You ask how mere information will change the current 
of your life. It may or may not. Much of the knowl¬ 
edge of the world is incidental to the main progress of 
existence. Advice is so little followed that its giving is a 
luxurious waste. The minister who hammers away week 
after week in volumes of advice and censure, does not 
see any change in the faces or lives of his congrega¬ 
tion; they come Sunday after Sunday, with that same 
patient, half-stupid, all enduring meekness that bears the 
stamp of duty. They have read the deluge of mind in the 
Sunday paper; they have broken off rather suddenly in 
the midst of some foul sensation, and they come to church 
for grace with an ill grace. Advice never did much good. 
“ Your sermon was so inspiring,” said the grocer at noon; 
and on Monday morning he put the same proportion of 
sand in his sugar. 

There is an immense distinction between the promulga¬ 
tion of a fact that gives direction to the main course of 
life and the offering of advice that affects only the inci¬ 
dentals. A preacher who had told his congregation how 
to live so as to have clean hearts, found that they one and 
all regarded the advice as first-class, but as belonging to 
their neighbors; thus A thought B needed it; B thought 
A needed it, and so on. One Sunday he told them all 
that they might make a thousand dollars apiece, for a 
certain wealthy philanthropist offered that reward to 
each man, woman and child in that church who would 
read the Bible through in a year, and who told no untruth, 
nor spoke an unkind word in a twelvemonth. That after¬ 
noon the dusty volumes were unshelved; next morning 
orders by telephone were flashing over the wires for 
Bibles at once, and on the following Sabbath inflamed 
eyes and sweet smiles greeted him from a packed audi¬ 
torium. The acquisition of a thousand dollars affected 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 181 

the progress along the main course of life, as every per¬ 
son knows; the getting of a clean heart was a matter that 
had no reference to the struggle for an existence, and 
could wait awhile. 

The same thing is true of advice that affects health. 
Persons must have confidence in its efficacy, and must 
also feel sure that their carelessness in living has not 
yet reached the limit of their vitality; it is only to save 
themselves from death, from a costly sickness or from 
severe pain, that they will accept any advice even if it 
is fully credited and known to be efficacious. Such is 
human nature. The reason of this is in the fact that 
ordinary ill-health and its cure are incidentals in the 
journey of life. The course of travel is not an incidental. 
There are four such courses; all main highways. One 
is the hypnotic, which is pursued by the contented under¬ 
lings ; they are the masses over whom the capable classes 
rise; and were it not for such masses, there would be no 
means of ascent. The traveler who sat on the peak of a 
lofty mountain thanked the ground for supporting the 
mountain; he thanked the base for supporting the upper 
part; he thanked the breast for supporting the top; he 
thanked the top for supporting him. 

The second class comprises those who are struggling 
along the highway of discontented subjection. They will 
release one in ten thousand from their number, and he will 
ascend to the top of the grandest eminence. The others 
will follow agitators self-chosen from their own ranks; 
they will furnish the great fault-finding hordes that vote 
one day at one election, and another way at the next, al¬ 
ways tearing down without hope of building. From this 
subjected but discontented class there come out master 
minds year after year as intelligence is acquired to help 
them; and they are the best candidates for the study of 
magnetism. The third highway is lined with those who 
have started well, but whose armies are in confusion. 


182 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


The fourth is the finer and more sparsely occupied road 
over which travel men and women who control their 
energies and are magnetic. We may add recruits from 
the other three ranks, and uplift all four. 

Thus is it seen that magnetism affects the main course 
of life. To those who are determined to rise the offer of 
knowledge is a training influence in itself. More than 
one ambitious person has said, “I have awaited some 
guiding principles to help me. I know now what I am 
and what I may become.’ ’ We have seen lives completely 
changed by nothing but a course of reading, or a course 
of instruction, consisting, not of advice as to what to do, 
but of information where to go. The sign-board tells 
where a certain journey will end, but offers no advice or 
suggestion as to the propriety of going there or elsewhere. 
When a man enters upon a certain highway, having at its 
termination the goal he seeks, he proceeds along that 
course, and adapts himself to its conditions and circum¬ 
stances. 

While there are other and perhaps more decisive 
methods of training in magnetism than the furnishing of 
knowledge as to what road to travel, there is none more 
important or effective than that which presents the facts 
that lead to such information. Few books, indeed, are 
helpful; they contain too much verbiage for the slight 
amount of solid knowledge. Principles are always an 
advantage, for they present laws, and laws are fixed rules 
founded in the impulses of nature and the modes of giv¬ 
ing them guidance. No man can read them without find¬ 
ing himself already leaving the wrong road and seeking 
the right one. A few principles in a lecture, in a lesson, 
in a book, have swung individuals around, changing for¬ 
ever the currents of their existence. This we have known 
over and over again among students of this science. 
The glory of living is that a man can alter his course 
for the better if he so chooses. 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 183 



The union of the wasting energies of the body creates 
great magnetism. 

This is the Thirty-fifth Principle. The laws that 
precede this should be re-read until they are understood. 
From their reading and absorption, there will come the 
desire, then the determination, to enter upon the right 
road. These are important influences, and they cannot 
be lightly regarded. We have seen that the confusion 
that arises from the discordant and warring forces within 
the body should be brought into a state of peace. That 
this will be done, we believe there is no doubt. 

Peace alone is not enough. The general who unifies his 
untrained troops has done something toward preparing 
for conquest, but not all. Their confusion ceases; they 
are no longer in conflict among themselves, but they may 
yet be a disintegrated mass, whose parts are not trained 
to work together. The estates and dominions that are 
contiguous in a country may cease to war with each other; 
but, like the German Empire, they may do more; they 
may form a union for offence and defence, a cemented 
nation composed of smaller peoples, each potent in its 
own forces, but mighty in its joining. 

The way in which this union should be brought about is 
a matter of the highest interest. There are always vari¬ 
ous suggestions that may be offered in most any subject 
of importance; and here we find it easier to treat this line 
of study in such off-hand manner than to deal more 
seriously with it; yet the full responsibility must be met. 
We know that a man who can achieve so much as to quell 
the confusion within him is already a monarch in his own 
realm; and we are sure that few there are who are strong 
enough in will-power, in purpose, in iron resolve and solid 


184 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


determination to command their own being, for it is the 
most wonderfully constructed and the most magnificently 
equipped temple in the whole realm of creation. He who 
maintains harmony in such an array, who is its acknowl¬ 
edged head, and who is able to lead it to victory, is a 
king indeed. 

These remarks lead us naturally to the method which 
we propose to adopt, after having given it thorough trial 
in. a wide range of cases during more than a quarter of a 
century. While at first it may seem as if the plan is not 
directly concerned in the cultivation of magnetism, a few 
weeks of trial will convince you to the contrary. It must 
be remembered that those persons who are said to be 
naturally gifted in the possession and use of these 
powers have come by them through methods of living that 
have tended toward such development. They know no 
exercises. The part of the process of culture is fully as 
important as any that may be associated with practice. 

A self-pledge has far more value than any specific 
action, for it involves the use of all the powers of the 
body, even the common drift of nutrition, and turns them 
into any desired channel if the intent of the obligation is 
fully observed. Three men start out to acquire the arts 
of magnetism. One thinks about it, sees the needs of the 
body, the mind and nerves, notes their wasting of 
energies, and his good sense tells him that no life can run 
itself without intelligent guide. He finds that he is a 
machine, a furnace, an engine, a boiler, a storage battery, 
an electrical dynamo, a full strung system of live wires, 
and that all this wonderful display of mechanical in¬ 
vention has an engineer, the brain, that knows not one 
thing about running it. He thinks this over, and all the 
while his good judgment, his fund of sense, is uncon¬ 
sciously throwing an influence over his daily career, and 
he may truly boast that he never took a lesson in magne¬ 
tism, although he is giving himself the best of lessons. 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 185 


The question is often asked why some men and women 
are so cultured in this attainment, while others are de¬ 
ficient; and it is said of them that they are endowed by 
nature. There is no such thing as endowment by nature. 
A quality, a talent, a gift, or any advantage may come 
down from former generations, but they do not arise out 
of the ground where nature had its birth. If you are 
more refined than other persons, it is because you have 
lived where there is less roughness, or you have decided 
not to live as roughly as others, or your parents or an¬ 
cestors have so lived, and their tendency has not been 
thwarted in your life. This is true of anything that is 
called an acquisition or a gift. 

Magnetic persons who never practiced or studied the 
subjects are sometimes those who have inherited the 
manner from their predecessors, but the latter have come 
by it through proper living of their own or of those whose 
blood flows in their veins. In no case is it a clear gift out 
of the bosom of nature. The three men, of whom we have 
made mention, start out to acquire this art. The first, 
as we have said, finds what a wonderful piece of work he 
is; is surprised that it is without engineer or manager, 
and is soon under the influence of this thought. He lives 
with it night and day; it goes with him in his work, in his 
pleasure, in his moments of idleness, just a thought; yet 
he cannot escape its influence. Soon he finds himself ad¬ 
vancing along a highway that is new to him, and he won¬ 
ders what has brought about the change. To his sur¬ 
prise, he believes a thought has turned the key of a 
greater life, and he begins to examine that matter, to see 
if his belief is well founded. 


“To me men are for what they are —■ 
They wear no maslcs with me. 

1 never sickened at the jar 
Of ill-tuned flattery. ’ * 


186 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 



A magnetic thought is an operation of the mind that in¬ 
fluences matter. 

This is the Thirty-sixth Principle. It is hardly neces¬ 
sary to repeat what all persons may easily ascertain to be 
a well-established fact. Out of a million thoughts, per¬ 
haps one may be magnetic; if it is, and you are affected 
by it, your life, your body itself, will be influenced by its 
power. This is not in any way connected with telepathy; 
nor with any phase of mental science; nor has it any oc¬ 
cult value. It is a plain, simple, easy proposition; and—, 
for fear some readers will misunderstand it, we will ex¬ 
plain its meaning at once. 

If you tell a man that he is not as nearly well as he 
ought to be, he will agree with you; the thought has fallen 
on barren ground. If you tell him his health is fail¬ 
ing rapidly, and that he will not live many years, he may 
or may not agree with you; and, in either event, he will 
pay but little attention to the statement. If you tell him 
there is a pocketbook full of ten-dollar bills waiting for 
him as soon as he gets well, he will go to work at once to 
secure the reward. The thought has struck home. It in¬ 
fluences him by reason of the fact that he acts upon it. 
His acting upon it required neither exercise, practice, nor 
training of any kind, but merely a better method of liv¬ 
ing; the rising at a more suitable time in the morning, the 
eating of more wholesome foods, the seeking of suffi¬ 
cient sleep, pure air, and normal conditions everywhere. 
These things done, the natural impulses set to work and 
give him perfect health. 

The occultist or visionary mental idealist will assert 
that mind influences matter. So it does, and in a variety 
of ways. The method now under consideration is free 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 187 


from all occult associations. The thought that bore the 
burden of power was of sufficient interest to arouse the 
man to action; that is the sum total of it all. You may 
call it motive, selfishness, or what you will; the fact 
remains that something that entered the mind operated to 
change the whole current of the man’s life. So, in 
another case, the mere statement that if you give certain 
persons rope enough, they will hang themselves, was of 
sufficient power to touch a man who had been unfortunate 
through talking too freely; he did nothing in particular, 
except allow those with whom he dealt to have their say, 
and the result was that his life became one of success, in¬ 
stead of failure. It is a very well understood fact that a 
course of living, like a mighty stream of water, may be 
deflected by surprisingly small things, although a thought 
is often great. 

The simple illustrations we have taken are not within 
the range of a magnetic thought. Our object was to 
show that any idea, however conceived, might sway the 
body of an individual upon whom it seemed to have effect. 
Even if it appealed to nothing but motive or greed, it was 
sufficient in its purpose. Thoughts may live as powers 
either in or out of magnetism, although it is claimed that 
all thoughts are necessarily charged with mental vitality, 
which is one kind of magnetism. Thinking, if conscious, 
is of such a class; but much of the ordinary thinking is 
automatic, and nothing automatic is magnetic. It is 
when a thought is having birth, when the desire, the ef¬ 
fort or the seeking after it, brings it into being, that it is 
conscious and powerful, even though its value is small. 
The originating of anything is evidence of some vitality, 
and conscious attention is necessary to such a process. 


il ln wit, as nature, what affects our hearts, 
Is not th' exactness of peculiar parts; 

’Tis not a lip or eye we beauty call, 

But the joint force, and full result of all.” 


188 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 



Magnetic thought is an aggregate unity of the sepa¬ 
rate thought cells of the body. 

This is the Thirty-seventh Principle. What is meant 
in this place as a magnetic thought is one that not only 
is attended by the conscious effort of the person produc¬ 
ing it, but has behind it the whole nature of the indi¬ 
vidual. It is not enough that it is capable of changing 
the current of a life; it must take a direct hold on that 
life. The difference should be understood. 

When the information is received that water has been 
discovered in the central district of an arid country, its 
force sends families thither, breaking up homes, and 
affecting the future conduct of hundreds of persons. 
There is nothing magnetic in this thought, in the sense in 
which we are now presenting the matter, for the infor¬ 
mation did not of itself take direct hold of the people. 
In order to become an influencing power, it was necessary 
that there should be an arid country, and that there 
should be suffering because of a lack of water. The news 
of a better locality was welcome in the highest degree. In 
this and the other cases cited the life within the body was 
not affected; the influence went no further than to change 
the place of residence and the circumstances incidental to 
that. 

On the other hand there are thoughts that are born in 
the very being of a person, backed by all his faculties and 
energies, which are sent forth to other persons, or which 
sway the individual himself. Such thoughts come from 
life, out of the realm of human feelings, and are destined 
to affect not merely the conduct, but the personality they 
touch. Instead of making a man move to a new country, 
they make him a new man, and it is the purpose of every 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 189 

magnetic thought to thus affect some life. It influences 
matter far more powerfully than ordinary appeals to 
motives or selfish interests. In a flash it marshalls one’s 
entire attention. 

Such a thought takes hold of a person and involves his 
whole nature, even being felt in his muscles and flesh, 
from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. “I 
experienced a thrill that made my skin grow cold , 9 9 said 
an auditor to a famous orator in referring to a certain 
passage in his speech that took the house by storm. “I 
felt just the same,” replied the speaker. We listen to 
some powerful thought uttered in a force of magnetism 
that pervades the whole body, and the feeling that we ex¬ 
perience is also found in that of the person who produces 
the idea; and the same is true, whether it is written or 
spoken. “When the line flowed off my pen, I realized 
its power even to my feet , 91 said a writer. ‘ 4 When I read 
the line, I was conscious of its power, and it took posses¬ 
sion of me,” said a reader; and it is true in one case as in 
the other. 

It seems that the whole being must live in the thought, 
must be behind it, and unite in giving it a living strength. 
It does not come from the mind alone, not from the brain, 
the nerves, the soul, the flesh, but from all together. 
Mind is the larger collection of gray matter in which 
vitality dwells; the ganglia, and all other minor collec¬ 
tions, are likewise endowed with intelligence, which is one 
of the expressions of vitality; but every atom of the body 
is charged with some mentality, which appears in compa¬ 
ratively larger form in cell structure, where gray matter 
seems to first congregate. It cannot exist unless intelli¬ 
gence exists with it; therefore it must represent some 
degree of thought; and, in the countless millions of these 
cells that are present in every cubic inch of flesh, there 
must be a greater proportion of magnetism than we have 
ever imagined, and this will account for the tremendous 


190 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


concentration of power that is felt in a thought whose life 
is charged with the magnetism of the whole body. 

Any person who has ever given birth to such products 
of the mind, is aware of what is meant. The way to dis¬ 
tinguish them is in the fact that a magnetic thought 
makes the body feel it from head to foot; while a mere 
mental idea has no influence over the flesh, over the ma¬ 
terial substance, or matter of the body, neither in the 
person who originates it, nor in the one who receives it. 
A line sometimes contains a book. A word or two may 
move a multitude. We have all read the famous remarks 
of generals in battle, whose single flashes of genius have 
burst forth in almost unpremeditated sayings, pregnant 
with force and stirring to the soul. They have without 
doubt turned defeat into victory at critical moments. In 
vain have historians attempted to analyze their mysteri¬ 
ous power; admitting always that a half dozen words, 
springing from human energy, have changed the face of a 
continent. 

We have seemingly diverged since we left our three 
friends in search of the way by which to acquire the art of 
magnetism. The first saw the natural processes, and 
quickly found himself confronted by some living princi¬ 
ples, and these we have stated. He next proceeded to see 
why certain men and women possess great energy of pur¬ 
pose, and he thought these might be ascribed to tempera¬ 
ment; yet the more he examined the propositions, the 
more was he convinced that temperament did not make 
magnetism, but was made by it. Then the problem be¬ 
came deeper. 

Why is it that some persons are magnetic while others 
are not? The brutal saloonkeeper, the savage that forces 
his gains by bullying, the foxy gambler, the coward that 
adulterates his goods and shrinks from the observation of 
mankind, the manipulator of stocks, the cheat and fraud, 
these are often money-makers without the aid of magne- 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 191 

tism; so it is not true that success is the gauge whereby 
such vital power may be measured. With magnetism all 
persons should succeed; without it, the dishonest may. 
All these facts were disclosed by our searching and in¬ 
quiring friend. He himself wished to acquire the art, 
and so betook himself to ascertain the science that 
directed its operation. 

This first man depends entirely on his powers of obser¬ 
vation for the information. He simply becomes satisfied 
that the body is a machine of great complication, which 
can no more he left to run itself than can any other 
machine; that the faculties are diverse and marvelous, 
and they, too, need an engineer at the throttle to guide 
and control them. These facts, coupled with the lessons 
derived from other lives, lead him to conclude that the 
power of magnetism is a resultant energy that is gener¬ 
ated by life itself, and that its degree of power is depend¬ 
ent upon the amount of intelligent direction the mind may 
give to the body and its faculties. He goes to work on 
this principle, and soon finds to his satisfaction that his 
conclusion is correct. He then progresses further, and is 
delighted at the power he has obtained. He is right. 
Man’s body is a far more delicate, and yet more effective, 
machine than ever has been seen elsewhere, and it is the 
only machine that man permits to run itself. Without 
an engineer it goes at will, and is ineffective; it merely 
struggles along, and to mend the errors that naturally 
arise from allowing it to run itself, there are thousands 
of drug stores and thousands of doctors waiting at every 
hand. Let a little intelligence of the right kind come into 
play, and these errors will not happen; force will he con¬ 
served; vitality will grow on itself, and soon the man or 
woman who is bright enough to find out these things will 
be credited with the possession of the gift of magnetism. 
This is the first way. 

The second man who starts out to acquire this art, takes 


192 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


a course slightly different from that of the man whose 
methods we have recently described. He does not wholly 
believe that magnetism is the natural accumulation of 
power coming from energies that have been made to 
serve the control of an intelligent mind. The first man 
concludes that these forces are running away or to waste, 
all the time they are left without an engineer to guide 
them; he studies other lives, and watches the same law at 
work within himself, and finds that his claims are true. 
The second man does not see how magnetism, which he 
supposes to be a gift, can be acquired without doing 
something. He goes to work to ascertain what a gift is, 
and, from all light that he can get from those who are so 
blessed, he is of the opinion that it is the result of a cer¬ 
tain way of living, the constant tendency of which is to 
stimulate and excite into development the powers within 
the body. 

Even being true, as he thinks, he cannot understand 
why this development takes place in one who only thinks 
about living in the way that favors such influences. What 
has the engineer to do with the engine that is running it¬ 
self? He takes control, and permits it to run only as he 
chooses. Then the machine is quite another piece of con¬ 
struction, for it is valued because of what it does. 
Knowledge and skill are required, to be sure; and here 
a volume of instruction of the right kind may be indis¬ 
pensable. Yet he believes in regime. He cannot satisfy 
himself that the engineer without training, practice and 
skill in the art of managing himself, would be able to 
manage his powerful and complicated engine. 

So this second man studies the lives of men and women 
who are acknowledged to be magnetic; he watches them 
in movement, in conversation, in idea, in action, until he 
is almost able to follow out their plan of living; and this 
he proceeds to reproduce. His one great lack, as he after¬ 
ward states, is a book or system of law to guide him. 


REALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 193 


This he procures, and he finds his magnetism developing 
rapidly, and making him a power among men. He has 
really entered upon a life of regime, of exact and careful 
conduct, in which he is but a stronger degree of the first 
man, who did less. The real difference is that one saw 
what was necessary to remove opposing influences and 
take a general supervision over natural faculties, so that 
these energies might not be left without an intelligent 
guide, while the other did all this, and more too, adopting 
a life of general regime to aid the development of the 
power. 

On comparing results the second man found himself the 
better of the two, and the reason was because he held the 
reins always in his hands, or had the running of the 
machinery always minutely under his control. He saw 
that magnetic persons who left their powers to go as they 
pleased, except when they chose to direct them, were al¬ 
ways breaking up in periods of life when they most 
needed them, as Napoleon, Blaine, Disraeli, and thou¬ 
sands of others, who might have avoided wrecks had they 
marshalled their faculties under a system of regime that 
held them in momentary sway. Hence the less brilliant 
man in the earlier years may go down into old age suf¬ 
fused with the glory of a longer victory and crowned with 
the laurel of unbroken success. 

The third man is perhaps more interesting. He knows 
all about the first and second, and still more wonders how 
any power can be acquired without something besides 
regime. He would like to enter into a system of practice, 
gather electricity as does the machine constructed for that 
purpose, and become a fully charged battery. He reads 
that this can be done by any person of ordinary intelli¬ 
gence. Herein he is right; but he will find by experiment 
that it is possible to generate more of such power than 
he can use, and that, unless he actually assumes control 
of his forces, he will be adding one more to the energies 


194 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


that are already running away with him. Here the dis¬ 
tinction is one of importance. The prime demand is for 
a controlling engineer, and this he can secure by allowing 
his own good judgment, his common sense, to govern his 
powerful army of energies, to bring them into a state of 
peace, and to unite them for action. 

Having considered the three methods that are possible 
of adoption, and found them all valuable; having looked 
into the minds of the classes of ambitious persons, who 
are most likely to succeed in the acquisition of this power, 
we will now proceed to offer the very best means of mak¬ 
ing the start. It is not so much the specific thing you 
do, as the road on which you travel, that determines what 
the results will be. This should be remembered. The diffi¬ 
culty in getting on the right road is not a great one; it 
requires decision, or a making up the mind, to do it, and 
then the step is taken. If you wish to go to one city, 
and are on the road to another, the first thing to do is to 
ascertain where the other road is, then how to get on it; 
after which, if you fail to go, the fault is your own. 



Self-pledges, honestly made, are sources of magnetism. 

This is the Thirty-eight Principle. A self-pledge is 
made to yourself, not to us or any other person. If you 
break it, you alone know it; the responsibility is with you, 
and you alone can mend it. A pledge is, and always has 
been, a great means of help to a strong character, and a 
fair means of help to a weak character. The argument 
that a man or woman of energy needs no such tether is 
not sustainable under examination. The strongest boats 
need the strongest moorings; the greatest ships require 
the most certain as well as the most secure of anchors. 


EEALM OF THE ESTATE OF PEACE 195 


Any definiteness of purpose is magnetic because it uni¬ 
fies energies of the body; and the more complete that pur¬ 
pose becomes, the more it will concentrate the millions of 
powers that make up the faculties behind the resolve. 
This ability to unite the divergent forces of one’s life is 
seen in the affairs of state in the policy of a great nation. 
England’s civil wars gave way to meet the dangers of a 
foreign enemy. Rome united her discordant factions 
under the skilful manipulation of Caesar, who sought to 
conquer all the world without her gates. Greece reached 
the climax of her power while her States fought side 
by side against her Asiatic enemies, and it was because 
of her political agitators at home that she fell a prey to 
nearer foes. Napoleon could not hold France together in 
time of peace; he broke his oaths in order to excite foreign 
war and thus retain control of his stormy people. The 
American Revolution was serious enough to weld the 
thirteen Colonies into one amalgamated nation; and when 
the country was divided into North and South by bloody 
war, the scars of dissension were obliterated by the con¬ 
flict with Spain, in which the blue and the gray fought 
side by side. 

A pledge is made for the purpose of entering boldly 
into the battle of life, and its first effect is to unify the 
army with which victory is to be won. It is a purpose 
crystallized. Any resolve has some value, and on the 
same principle. Magnetism awaits use; not getting it, 
the power wastes away. With a lack of regime, there 
are millions of energies running wild, which would prove 
tremendous batteries of magnetism if more regime were 
to be employed to hold them in check. What is meant 
by resolve, purpose and such higher conditions of the 
mind, must be understood in the sense referred to in the 
realm of The Will, as set forth in this volume. Names 
are somewhat technical when used in a specific study. 

This realm is now coming to a close. It is one of collect- 


196 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


ing forces and harmonizing them, preparatory to the 
greater battles that are to follow. It is the realm of peace, 
the estate of qnietnde snch as precedes the movement of 
a vast array of battalions toward the enemy of success. 
Toq many students of these problems make the unpardon¬ 
able error of supposing that will-power and magnetism 
are evidenced by the mad plunge into the ranks of the foe, 
before an attempt is made to collect and count the forces 
at command. As sensible would it be for any general to 
hurl his columns against the enemy while yet his soldiers 
were carousing and fighting among themselves. 




“Its holy flame forever burneth, 

From Heaven it came, to Heaven returneth 
Too oft on earth a troubled guest, 

At times deceived, at times opprest; 

It here is tried and purified, 

And hath in Heaven its perfect restA* 


REALM FIVE 


W E live in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not breaths; 

In feelings, not in figures on a dial. 

We should count time by heart-throbs. He most lives, 
Who thinks most, feels the noblest, acts the best. 

And he whose heart beats quickest lives the longest: 
Lives in one hour more than in years do some 
Whose fat blood sleeps as it slips along their veins. 

Life is but a means unto an end; that end, 

Beginning, mean, and end to all things — God. 

The dead have all the glory of the world.” 


THE ESTATE 

OF 

The Will 

THE REALM OF POWER 

‘IMMORTAL clouds from the echoing shore 
1 Of the father of streams from the sounding sea, 
Dewy and fleet, let us rise and soar; 

Dewy and gleaming and fleet are we! 

Let us look on the tree-clad mountain-crest, 

On the sacred earth where the fruits rejoice, 

On the waters that murmur east and west, 

On the tumbling sea with his moaning voice — 
For unwearied glitters the Eye of the Air, 

And the bright rays gleam; 

Then cast we our shadows of mist, and fare 
In our deathless shapes to glance everywhere 
From the height of the Heaven, on the land and air, 
And the ocean stream.” 


( 197 ) 


H E that knows not, and knows that he knows not; he 
is a fool,— shun him. 

He that knows not, and knows that he knows not; 
he is ignorant,— teach him. 

He that knows, and knows not that he knows; he 
is blind,— lead him. 

He that knows, and knows that he knows; he is 
wise,— follow him.” 



Again I wandered when the salt sea-tide 
Withdrew its wave; 


And there, unchanged, no taint in all its sweet, 
No anger in its tone, 

Still as it thought some happy brook to meet, 
The spring flowed on. 

While waves of bitterness rolled o’er its head, 
Its heart had folded deep 

Within itself, and quiet fancies led, 

As in a sleep; 

Till, when the ocean loosed his heavy chain, 
And gave it back to-day. 

Calmly it turned to its own life again 
And gentle way.” 


A N Eden blooms in the waste wilderness, 
And fountains sparkle in the arid sands. 
And timbrels ring in maidens’ glancing hands, 
And marble cities crown the laughing lands, 
And pillared temples rise thy name to bless.” 

( 198 ) 



THE SEVEN WISE MEN OF GREECE AND THEIR 
WISEST SAYINGS. 

“Know thyself.”— Solon. 

“Consider the end.”— Chilo. 

“Know thy opportunity.”— Pittacus. 

“Most men are bad.”— Bias. 

“Nothing is impossible to industry.”— Periander. 
“Avoid excess.”— Cleobulus. 

“ Suretyship is the precursor of ruin.”— Thales . 



HE human will is in no wise like the will of lower 
animals. It may set itself to a fixed purpose and 
conquer, all the while urging on the progress of 
its action; while the will of the animal is more 
like the stubbornness of man. One takes a track, 
and does not deviate from the course to be pursued; the 
other fastens itself to a certain idea, and cleaves to that 
with tenacity. There are points of resemblance, but in 
the main the distinction lies in this separation of the 
199 













200 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


mind’s activities; by which is meant that in the exercise 
of the will there is a continued activity carrying it along, 
while in stubbornness, as in animals’ purposes, the idea is 
fixed beyond recall or variation, and any interference 
with it is regarded as an intrusion. 

For fear that this is not yet clear we will explain fur¬ 
ther what is meant. The seat of all will-power is in the 
brain. That which decides what to do or not to do is 
called the mental action; and although animals are said 
to lack minds as organs of reasoning, they possess mental 
faculties not very far below some of those accredited to 
certain members of the human family. They decide to 
do or not to do a hundred or more conscious acts daily. 
It is an operation of the will that causes each decision, 
but after the point of action has been reached in their 
thinking processes, the muscles, or else the physical divi¬ 
sion of the brain, the cerebellum, takes possession of the 
whole being and knows no change. 

This limitation of activity of the brain to merely the 
deciding of what to do or not to do, is peculiar to animals 
and to stubborn human beings. The cat in earnest sees 
its prey, it measures the distance, and decides that it can 
or cannot make the leap successfully, for it is familiar 
with its own powers through prior experiment. For this 
the cat plays in kittenhood; it jumps about in every 
possible use of the body, until it knows the length of its 
range in making the spring; and not until old age withers 
its vigor does it cease altogether to play. The same is 
truth of all animals, even the most savage. The lion 
in the jungle lies in ambush, and prepares to make the 
leap only when the prey is within reach; it may wait, and 
wait in vain. 

The peculiar characteristic of the animal brain is to see 
its way clear to doing a certain thing, and then proceed¬ 
ing to its execution on the theory that it is surely to be 
done. It cannot understand nor brook disappointment. 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


201 


The little ant shows every indication of a hot temper if 
its purpose is interfered with; so does the familiar bee 
that busies itself about the flowers at the porch. Most 
wild animals are terrible only when they are checked in 
their attempts to do what they undertake, and the ugly 
dispositions of domestic pets are due to being thwarted 
from time to time. Like obstinate men and women, they 
rage or grow sullen when something occurs to make a 
change of purpose necessary. You know how almost un¬ 
bearable it is for a mulish individual who says he will not 
do a certain thing, to be compelled to do that very thing; 
yet how pleasant it is for any sensible person to change 
the mind when the exigency requires. The one is animal 
by proclivity, the other is human in the best sense of the 
word. To close the mind is to stop the will’s action after 
it has merely decided to do or not to do a certain thing. 



Stubbornness is a physical, fixed and non-magnetic 
force. 

This is the Thirty-ninth Principle. What is the real 
character of stubbornness should be well understood, for 
it is common to mistake this unprogressive condition for 
will-power. Such a man is reputed to be of strong will. 
Why? Because he never changes his mind when once 
he makes it up. Then he is a fool. There are some 
men and some women who take special pride in having it 
known that they never change their minds. ‘‘ Mother is 
slow to make up her mind, but when she does, nothing can 
alter it,” says a proud daughter, as she glances at the 
mother who rocks sternly in her chair. 

You can examine and analyze every such case of obsti¬ 
nacy, and you will never find one of magnetism among 


202 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


them. This mother, who is so slow to make up her mind, 
justifies herself on the ground that she would be very 
fickle to decide one way, and then another. A father, 
who adopted a rule of uniformity with his children, would 
adhere to it through thick and thin, because he knew he 
would look weak if his word could not be relied upon. 
When he told a son to do a certain thing, it must be done, 
even if the circumstances requiring its performance had 
changed, or if a mistake had been made in the order. One 
day he told him to lock up the house at eight o ’clock, and 
not open it for any living person, as he himself had a key 
and would open the door when he came home about eleven 
o’clock. It was a cold night. The boy’s mother and 
sister, who had gone out of town on a visit, arrived back 
a day sooner than intended, and found all doors and 
windows locked. They called to the boy, who declared, 
in the exact words of his father, that the door was not to 
be opened for any living being, and that he did not dare 
to disobey. He clung to the idea, and the father praised 
the boy, while deploring the sad annoyance and subse¬ 
quent fatal pneumonia that ended the foolishness. To 
this day that man, like millions of his stripe, believe that 
it is a matter of valor to make up the mind and not change 
it. 

Fathers who have young sons, or daughters in their 
teens, are more likely to become obstinate old fools than 
other men, who are unencumbered with such offspring. 
Here is a case: One father of this kind told his boy to 
carry a letter to the post-office, and be sure to get it there 
before the mail closed at six o’clock in the afternoon. His 
clock was wrong, and the boy found it out when half way 
to the post-office. He was told he could put the letter on 
the train, which he did; it was handed to the postal clerk 
of the mail car, where it was as safe as in any post-office. 
The boy had done right; it would have been foolish to 
have done otherwise, yet his father whipped him, saying 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWEK 


203 


that when he was told to do a thing he mnst do it as told, 
no matter whether he knew it was right or not. 

Such obstinacy was the worst training the boy could 
have received. In this world the art of living well and 
successfully is the art of adjusting one’s self to the ever 
varying tide of circumstances. It is an ocean crowded 
with craft; not a barren sea in which the obstinate helms¬ 
man is the only man afloat. The swells are always at 
work drifting one out of his course, and throwing other 
craft in one’s line of progress. The father whom we 
have described would have told his boy to steer the ship 
for a certain port, no matter what came in the way. The 
wise man would have explained contingencies to his son, 
would have instructed him in the art of adjusting him¬ 
self to changes of conditions, and have praised his 
sagacity. In no other way can life be made a harmony 
and its progress a success. 

No policy, no plan, no operation can be so clearly out¬ 
lined ahead as to require no change. The greatest bat¬ 
tles of history have been fought out on lines that varied 
materially from those intended. Even where the far- 
seeing sagacity of the keenest general has caught in ad¬ 
vance the inevitable moves that must lead to the battle’s 
end, he has had to meet contingencies by departures, one 
way or the other, in order to force the moves as he saw 
them. Change is the law of life. A man may aim to 
reach a certain goal, and may keep steadfastly to his 
purpose, but his road must be suited to the direction in 
which he is traveling. ‘ ‘ I will go to that end, ’ ’ says the 
determined man. 4 4 1 will go to that end by this route, ’ ’ 
says the obstinate man. The one gets there by adjusting 
his journey to the conditions with which he must con¬ 
tend; but he gets there. The other starts out on the 
road he himself has ordained to be the one that must 
be traveled, and when he finds that it is not the right 
one, he stands still, and will not budge. 


204 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


Such conduct is too often supposed to be evidence of a 
magnetic character; but it is quite the opposite. If you 
have an electrical dynamo that is capable of supplying 
your house with light, you must know how to set it in 
motion and keep it going. The fact that the power is 
there is not sufficient; you cannot afford to cut off the 
current by deciding in your mind that the power will 
do the work. Turn on the current. The will is supplied 
by a steady energy that comes from the strength of your 
purpose. Now, suppose that the energy is there, and is 
strong enough, of what use is it if you shut off the mind ? 
The current must be turned on, must remain on, and the 
energy of purpose must not be slackened. 

Look at the case of the man who bitterly complained 
that he had met only failure in life; nothing but reverses 
from the moment he began to take care of himself. “Why 
is it?” he asked. “I have been industrious, but that 
has not brought wealth. I have worked into the night 
for years to keep out of the poorhouse; and I have never 
got far out of its shadow. Why is it? Then, why do 
others hesitate to deal with me? I pride myself on my 
honesty. I am worthy of their confidence. In business 
I can get a reasonable amount of credit, all I ask; but I 
cannot buy as low as others; I have to sell for less, and 
very few seem anxious to have anything to do with me. ’’ 
His wife also spoke of him in the highest terms. “Why 
has not Hiram succeeded better? He is a man of iron 
will.” This added light to the mystery. It seems that 
some misguided guardian had instilled into Hiram’s 
mind that art of making it up and sticking to it. When 
he got an idea well lodged in his cranium, he hung to it. 
He locked his mind up, and threw the key away. It was 
that or nothing. 

This man who so bitterly complained of his fate, can be 
better understood by referring to an incident that illus¬ 
trates his whole career. He owned some land, and man- 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


205 


aged to mortgage it for nearly its full value, so that his 
equity in it was very small. Still he owned it, and took 
an interest in its surroundings. A natural brook ran 
across the corner of the rear end, at a place where he 
missed none of the land by reason of its rocky condition; 
and through this brook the rains washed from the ad¬ 
joining ground. This he considered an encroachment on 
his rights, so he dammed the brook, and forced the over¬ 
flow elsewhere to the annoyance of his neighbors. They 
requested him to take down the barrier. He declined. 
They threatened, and he laughed at them. He had 
closed his mind. Once shut, it was an engine of power 
that had stopped running. He did not, for he could not, 
think beyond the one idea that the land was his; what 
was his he could do with as he pleased, and he pleased 
to dam the brook. That was the beginning and the end, 
the all in all. When he made up his mind, it was made 
up. Hiram was a man of iron will. So was the jackass 
that planked his feet in the roadway of the forest and 
would not budge, not even when they built a fire under 
him. Hiram made it known that he would not remove 
the dam. They summoned him to court, and he stayed 
at home. The judge ordered a removal of the dam, and 
he tore up the paper. He was cited to court for contempt, 
and would not go. They took him there by force. He 
was fined, but would not pay. He was ordered to jail 
until he had purged himself of the contempt, and this 
he would not do. His good wife finally paid the money, 
kicked out the dam, apologized to the judge, and secured 
her husband’s release. He even did not seem anxious 
for that, but as he had found it impossible to get some 
of his favorite dishes in the jail diet, he concluded to 
get back home once more. 

The Iron Chancellor, Bismarck, was a man of deter¬ 
mined will, as set and steadfast as he could be, but he 
never permitted his mind to close itself against change. 


206 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


While adhering to a purpose with bulldog pugnacity, 
he used all means to win, even at times pretending to 
abandon it. He obeyed his friends; he respected all 
authority above and below him; he shifted his course 
a dozen times when it was policy, but he clung to the idea 
of ultimate victory. This is magnetism. It is not ob- 
stinancy. Had he dammed a brook that served to carry 
away the water from the neighbor’s land, he would have 
removed the dam on request if he had ascertained that 
the law so decreed. Able men take soundings. Small 
men are sometimes great in this regard, and they have 
magnetism in relative degrees, rising above the strata 
beneath them. Good judgment is discretion; discretion 
is valor, and both are the opposites of obstinancy. Ho 
not get the mind fixed, for it will close and shut off the 
power of the will. 



The will is an active progressive force. 

This is the Fortieth Principle. The difference between 
making up one’s mind and executing its purpose is a vast 
one. What is called the will is a force; it is not a con¬ 
dition or situation. It is a train in motion, not a mule 
standing in the path of progress, and refusing to move 
one way or the other. Under the special circumstances 
of life, the habit of making up one’s mind and holding 
it unalterable, is both dangerous and disastrous. The 
future is always before us, and it is not possible to see 
its vicissitudes. What you have passed through in the 
last ten years is quite different from what you contem¬ 
plated. You could hardly have foreseen half of its in¬ 
cidents. 

All these propositions appear to conflict with one an- 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


207 


other. But they do not. Obstinancy is the closing of the 
mind, shutting it up, and turning off its currents of 
action as the engineer may close the throttle by making 
up his mind to do so. Will-power is the turning on of the 
current, the starting of the engine. Here is the first dis¬ 
tinction, and it should be borne in mind. It seems also 
to be a contradiction, for it deprecates the idea of mak¬ 
ing up the mind. A resolve to do a thing that is really 
undertaken is quite different from a setting of the mind 
blindly. If you seek a certain goal, if you are taking 
your ship toward a port, the will-power is in full opera¬ 
tion; but there is no need in setting the mind. It should 
be open and active, ready to consider any matters that are 
likely to arise. Obstinancy is not always a negative po¬ 
sition. What we maintain is that it is a position, and 
not an activity. Thus if a captain decided to go to a 
certain port by a certain route, he is carrying out his 
purpose so long as everything favors his progress by 
that direction; but if he refuses to change the route when 
good judgment requires, either for safety, for lessening 
the time, or other reason, he is obstinate; his mind has 
become set and is no longer a machine of the will. It 
would be as unwise to lash the helm and see nothing, 
know nothing, determine nothing, after the one making 
up of the mind in the start. 

It is necessary to make up the mind. This cannot be 
denied. But it is necessary to keep it active and under 
control as a power. A resolve may open or close the 
mind; if it opens it, it may become a magnetic force; if 
it closes it, the result is obstinancy. It is necessary for 
the general to determine what he will do in battle, and 
if he gives orders for the advance upon the enemy’s 
breastworks, he must be ready at all times to change his 
method of proceeding without abandoning the purpose 
to carry the position. It may be necessary for him to 
call his troops back a number of times, or to change the 


208 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


route of the advance, or to retire when the firing is too 
heavy, or otherwise maneuver as the vicissitudes of 
battle may demand. Here it will be seen that the purpose 
remains unaltered, and the will-power is alive in the 
fullest energy; discretion and valor clasp hands; the 
skilful resting, the withdrawal, the constant change of 
tactics, are all evidences of an open mind, willing to do 
whatever is best for securing the end which is in view. 
Had the general blindly ordered the troops to advance 
in a certain way, or by methods of action which were at 
variance with good judgment, he might have been ig¬ 
norant or unable to make himself master of the art of 
war; but if he persisted in a course of conduct that could 
not be justified even under the theory of a mistaken 
judgment, he would have been obstinate, for the mind 
would have been closed to all suggestions or thought of 
variation necessary to save his soldiers from unwarrant¬ 
able bloodshed. 

From these illustrations it will be seen that a person 
may be obstinate affirmatively by closing the mind upon 
some determination to act or take a particular course, 
and allow no variance from that. It would be the same 
as if there were no mind at all after the initiative had 
been taken. As well might a locomotive be started 
blindly upon a journey without any one to guide it on 
the way, as was done when a discharged employe of a 
railroad company opened the throttle of an engine, and 
jumped from the cab when it got under way, watching 
it as it sped out of sight. Most persons fail in life whose 
will-power is of the wrong kind. They have the ability 
to make up the mind to win success; they see ahead of 
them the goal which should be reached, and they start 
for it, thinking that all that is necessary is the aim and 
the getting under way. 

There are two considerations relating to the importance 
of making up the mind, which should be understood in 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


209 


this connection. Shall a person keep the mind open and 
give it free opportunity to change at will, or shall the 
mind, when once made up, remain steadfast to its pur¬ 
pose and allow no change? If the former proposition 
is true, then there is nothing but vacillation in any 
project of life, and the world is too full of these uncertain 
persons, who do not know what they want more than a 
day at a time. If the latter proposition is true, then a 
mistaken idea must be pursued to the end, even if nothing 
but disaster awaits it. What has previously been said 
may now be crystallized into the following summing up: 
There must be known in advance the goal toward which 
one directs his journey; this goal must be determined 
upon in a proper way, without hazard of judgment or 
the prospect of certain success; and then the purpose 
must go on until the end is reached. The only thing 
important, and the only thing that should be unchange¬ 
able, is the goal; all else must yield and shape itself to 
this bit of human history. The best way of proceeding 
may or may not be understood at the start, and it is 
along the journey’s course that an open mind is required, 
for the energy of an active will must not be relaxed 
until the victory has been attained. 


t 41 t 

♦> ♦> 


Development of the will requires the cultivation of 
straightforward thought. 

This is the Forty-first Principle. The answer to the 
questions raised may be found under the law we have 
just stated. If it is true that so sad an error has been 
inaugurated as that a person has started toward a goal 
that is not worth the effort to reach, and has sacrificed 
perhaps some of the best years of his life in toil that 


210 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


must now be regarded as wasteful, the graver problem 
arises, whether the steps should be retraced and a new 
goal sought. Of course the root of the whole trouble 
is due to the mistake of choosing the wrong road in the 
beginning, and this can only be lamented, not remedied. 

The remark is often made that it w r ould be a great 
blessing if the right goal could be chosen at the start. 
It is undoubtedly true that some failures in life are 
ascribable to the selection of a wrong purpose; but the 
chief causes of disaster are not due to the choice so much 
as the way the journey is made. We shall briefly discuss 
both phases of this matter. In the first place, no person 
should make an error in the choice of the goal, whether 
it be that of his life work, or some one of the lesser ends 
that are necessary in the great struggle. If his judgment 
be poor, he should seek the aid of one whose advice he 
respects, and even then he need not run much risk of 
making a mistake. When MacMahon, a poor boy of 
France, saw the dazzling glory which surrounded the 
office of marshal of that great country, he resolved to 
devote his life to the one purpose of reaching that posi¬ 
tion. After events justified the statement that it was 
not a wild flight of his mind, but a fixed design, which 
had been thought out with some knowledge of the diffi¬ 
culties that would stand in the way. Some persons 
might regard him as demented, others as foolhardy, still 
others as ignorant of what he was undertaking; but Mac¬ 
Mahon was evidently thinkng in what we call a straight¬ 
forward direction. He knew that the office might be 
attained through merit, that the first requisite was the 
ability to perform its duties, that he must be a soldier 
in the ranks before he could hope to become an officer, 
that he must win his way from one grade to another, as 
thousands before him had done, and that he must seek 
such elevation as would place him within easy distance 
of the goal; and while this might be in sight, the most 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


211 


difficult step of all was the shortest. There is nothing 
impossible, nor improbable in so much of the journey. 
From the condition of poverty and obscurity to that of 
high official rank in the army of France was a long but 
reasonably certain advance; he saw that it was within 
the range of the right kind of a youth, and he knew that 
the right kind of a man could bridge the final gulf. He 
succeeded; he became Marshal of France; he became 
more. 

We have selected an extreme case as an example of 
what is meant by straightforward thought in the develop¬ 
ment of the will. Had this young man decided to become 
emperor of that nation, he would at no time have been 
reasonably sure of the fulfillment of his purpose, and he 
might have been open to the charge of weak-mindedness. 
When Napoleon stood on the bank of the Seine, about 
to plunge into its waters to obtain that relief which his 
fevered and disordered brain demanded, he saw no hope 
of anything in life; nor is it true that, when he led the 
army of Italy through its series of brilliant victories, he 
was then contemplating the mastery of France. His 
fate unrolled to him page by page, and he himself said 
that he was a man of destiny, being led on whithersoever 
its powers decreed. We can hardly imagine a young 
man seeing his way clear to the overthrow of any power, 
even a provisional government, until he had a reasonable 
assurance that such an end was possible. MacMahon 
had such assurance. Napoleon’s career was a series of 
goals, each carrying him higher and higher, until he be¬ 
came dictator of Europe. 

It is probable that destiny opens up in a series of pros¬ 
pects these goals to every earnest life. Starting with a 
fixed determination to make the most of the conditions 
at hand, and bending every energy to do the very best 
that circumstances will permit, a mind of iron will 
does not have to proceed far before a new plane of 


212 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


action appears beyond tbe horizon. Destiny is at work. 
Again the true heart toils well and aims high; the foot¬ 
ing is becoming more secure each day, and soon there 
is no doubt that something awaits further on. Whether 
the compass of living be small or great, the noblest suc¬ 
cesses are achieved in this way, and the end of one’s 
career need not be sought or even known in the begin¬ 
ning. What is true of a whole life is true of any part 
of it. To make the very most of what is within reach 
is sure of rapidly extending the lines of the horizon and 
increasing the compass of our possibilities. Lord Bea- 
consfield determined to become a member of Parliament; 
he was a young man of about twenty-two, possibly, at 
the time, and it was probable that the premiership was 
not in his mind, although it was not out of his reach. 
Had he thought to make himself king of England, the 
whole purpose would have been chaotic. Nothing 
daunted him. When he finally obtained a seat in Par¬ 
liament, and obtained a hearing, he made the most 
dismal of failures; yet his purpose was unshaken. 

An analysis of his character may throw some light 
upon our principle. He was not seeking his election for 
the purpose of filling his purse or gratifying a temporary 
whim; he wished to come before the nation as a man of 
power, and, having come into possession of the oppor¬ 
tunity, he immediately proceeded to use it to that end. 
At first he was a Liberal, but the party was unpopular, 
and he deviated his course to one that would place him 
on the winning side. His first speech was laughed at and 
jeered; he felt the weakness of his abilities, but he told 
his hearers that the time would come when they would 
listen to him, and this indicated that his will was su¬ 
preme. Having become a Conservative, and having 
made himself a power in Parliament, he quickly suc¬ 
ceeded in showing Peel that he was a lieutenant of no 
small value. Able leaders of great political parties must 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


213 


have assistants about them capable of executing their 
wishes. Greatness lives in the men who serve it. Dis¬ 
raeli never swerved from the purpose of his ambition, 
but he altered his path and changed his methods as often 
as he could gain some end by so doing. He saw the vul¬ 
nerable points in the character of his leader, and forth¬ 
with proceeded to take advantage of them. In a speech 
in Parliament, ostensively intended for another purpose, 
he placed, Peel on trial, succeeded in overthrowing his 
government, and was chosen to heal the breaches he had 
made. 

The story of Beaconsfield’s life shows him to have been 
a man who was thwarted often in his progress toward 
the goal which he sought, but who never swerved from 
its ultimate attainment. He was willing to step aside 
when the obstacles were too great to be surmounted, to 
thrust them aside when he felt that he had the power, 
to compromise when neither was possible, and to make 
them his tools if something was to be gained thereby. 
His career is an illustration of what is meant by straight¬ 
forward thought, for he kept the end in view. Had he 
made his plans in any other way, as most men do who are 
weak, he would have altered his purpose for some im¬ 
mediate success. As long as the thought in mind is 
straightforward, it will not deviate from the purpose, 
but will change only its method of pursuit. 



The will sets the goal of purpose. 

This is the Forty-second Principle. It is very easy 
for weaklings to depart from a plan which they have 
entered upon with some display of energy, and the lives 
of most men and women show that they are incapable 


214 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


of maintaining the straightforward thought which alone 
sustains the will and brings success. The case is so com¬ 
mon, and may be so easily recognized, that a single in¬ 
stance will be sufficient to explain what is meant. A 
young man enters the university, and knows nothing 
of what course he will pursue after graduation. He says 
he will be older then and in a better position to determine. 
In this he is right, for a general education may be made 
the foundation of most any kind of a worthy career. 
He becomes a lawyer, and resolves to reach the head of 
his profession, clear way up in the top ranks, where there 
is so much room, as Daniel Webster once said. In the 
first year of his practice his receipts are in the neighbor¬ 
hood of two hundred dollars, and as this is in excess of 
what Webster and Choate earned in the same period of 
time, he plods on very well satisfied. At the end of five 
years he is able to squeeze out less than one thousand 
dollars per annum, and some of this by questionable 
methods. On again comparing his career with that of 
Webster and Choate, he finds that he is far in the back¬ 
ground. He places the snuffer over the candle of his 
ambition, extinguishes the flame, and runs for office. He 
is elected to some county position, and receives a salary 
of fifteen hundred dollars or more a year. He becomes a 
political wire-puller, assists his Congressman in the cam¬ 
paign, and is rewarded with a temporary position of 
private secretary. When the fortunes of his leader begin 
to wane, he is helped into one of the departments of the 
general government at Washington, where he seems rea¬ 
sonably certain of a salary sufficient to live upon; and 
here he enters upon a career of slow decay for the rest 
of his active days. 

The case we have cited is, as we have said, a common 
one. The particular details may be varied to suit the 
difference in any other instance which involves the same 
principle. Thus many young men, who start out in busi- 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


215 


ness with the determination to become merchant princes, 
turn to the law; a surprising large number of practicing 
attorneys seek the ministry, and the change of purpose 
thus goes on to suit the probabilities of success in these 
weak characters. These departures from one drift to 
another are not steps in the line of a fixed purpose. Bea- 
consfield would never have played such a part, nor would 
any other person whose will-power was sustained by 
straightforward thought. This means that shifting devi¬ 
ations for temporary policy that start life toward an 
entirely different goal make the mind an instrument of 
crooked purpose, and they show the lack of will¬ 
power as well as the lack of magnetism. 

We are sure that the goal may be determined upon 
without mistake. Let it be what it may, the will that 
fixes it should be sustained and developed into greater 
and greater proportions of power by a straightforward 
direction of the mind, willing to deviate in the steps that 
are taken, but not in the end to be secured. No person 
can afford to make a mistake in the selection of any great 
goal, nor can he afford to depart from the attainment of 
that goal. These two things are certain. The will is 
rapidly developed by seeing that those mistakes do not 
happen. It is developed by the constant adherence to 
the purpose already formed. Without such a purpose 
it has no port to make, no pathway to pursue across the 
ocean of life. There is really no such thing as a fixed 
life work; the best journeys are those that keep in a well 
chosen course and make the most of what is at hand. 

The will must never be relaxed in its active urging on¬ 
ward of the individual career. It should not refuse to 
adopt the best means and the best methods. It should 
go ahead. But, on the other hand, it must not set itself 
upon some particular detail that can be circumvented 
with greater ease than it can be adopted. There should 
be no useless resolving to do something of minor value, 


216 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


no wasting of energy on trifles. The young man who had 
no aptitude for the stage, but who studied therefor be¬ 
cause some phrenologist, who was paid to say something, 
told him that the shape of his head was exactly like 
that of Edwin Booth’s, could not be persuaded from his 
purpose, and he went on to the direst failure wihout one 
opportunity for winning laurels in histrionics. What was 
his method? He studied and waited. He did not do any¬ 
thing aggressive; he made no effort to test himself alone; 
he merely studied in a desultory manner and waited. He 
shut his mind off, refused obstinately to be swerved from 
his purpose, and waited for the prediction to come true. 
Had he used his will-power as an aggressive force, he 
could have accomplished his end. He could have climbed 
to the top round of that ladder had he been in earnest. 
No obstinate man is in earnest. Aggression, backed by 
will, makes magnetism, and failure is impossible. 


1 43 l 

T £. 

♦**.*..*..*.»*..*.**.**..*..j..*..*..*..*..*.»*«.*..*..*.»** 


Be in earnest. 

This is the Forty-third Principle. To be sincere at all 
times is to be faithful to those trusts which have been 
placed in your keeping by Nature and God. Faculties 
that might be cultivated in the highest degree should 
not be regarded as things for trifling. Mind in itself is 
an organ of vast powers; it may be made more command¬ 
ing year after year if it is nurtured and used aright; but 
it leads its owner down many steep declivities of dis¬ 
appointment in life when it is slightingly treated. 

Many a beautiful mind, of promise far exceeding the 
ordinary cast, has been warped by the trifling methods of 
living. The trashiest kind of reading presented it as a 
regular diet, and were a remonstrance to be made, the 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


217 


reply would come back to the effect that there is but one 
life to live, and it would be monstrous to commit that 
to seriousness. Such a reply is trifling. Such a life is 
trifled with. Such a mind is useless, as the after story 
may show if it is learned at all. Few care to know it. 
Here is a young man who sleeps late, rushes through his 
meals, crams his brain with the sensations of the papers 
while his feet are above his head, and spends night till 
long past midnight hour in reading cheaply written 
novels, and being told that he is destroying his faculties, 
he sneers forth the word “crank,’’ and goes along his 
course, rotting on the way to the grave. Too many men 
and women are mere triflers. 

We believe in sunshine, in cheerfulness, in the happi¬ 
ness that leaves no sting. We do not believe in the sickly 
flush of diseased joys that spring out of laziness, lounging, 
morbid thoughts or lecherous habits. Nature gives 
beauty to the flower that grows by the impulses she 
furnishes, and it is her loathing to behold the painted 
daub on the walls of the brothel. The man or woman who 
shouts “crank” at one who is in earnest is as much out 
of the joys of life as though the worms had already be¬ 
gun their borings through the coffin. No such person is 
sincere. To mock others is to chaff at God. Few are 
those who respect the powers with which they are en¬ 
dowed; great is the reward of such respect. 

Many of the great men have left their testimony to the 
importance of being in earnest. “What must I do to 
succeed in life?” asks an ambitious young man of one 
who has tasted the pleasures of fame through merit. 
“Always be in earnest,” was the reply. Another asked 
a similar question of Burke, who said: “Be in deadly 
earnest.” From an acquaintance with the biographies 
of many of earth’s favored sons and daughters, the same 
counsel seems to have been the golden thread that con¬ 
trolled them in the growing years, when the struggle 


218 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


required the utmost zeal in order to win. “Be in earn¬ 
est” has been the motto of all who have conquered. 

It is necessary to be in earnest in little things as well 
as great. The purpose of the mind should be sincere, 
honest, clear, definite and thorough. Talk to the least of 
your fellow beings as if you believed them worthy of your 
attention, and be in earnest. Do not trifle with body, 
with health, with mind, or with any of the faculties that 
are entrusted to your care. In every deed, in every re¬ 
mark, in play, in sport, in love, in labor, in all things, be 
in earnest. This virtue will stamp itself upon your 
thought, it will affect your daily habits, it will be seen 
by others, and ere long you will be believed in, and your 
power over others will rapidly become recognized. It 
pays. 



Courage is the magnetism of aggressive action. 

This is the Forty-fourth Principle. When you know 
that a certain course is right, that harm to justice can¬ 
not come from it, that you will achieve a grander stand¬ 
ard by adhering to it, then you must not be swerved 
from it by any considerations of danger or fear, and 
certainly not because it may be inconvenient to do what 
needs to be done. It is not always in moral questions 
that courage claims action, and the mind requires courage 
to spur it on. Sometimes there are crises in business, 
in society or in friendship that can be met only by the 
energy of this virtue; and in self-conflicts as well the 
power of courage is capable of turning defeat into 
victory. 

Look at some difficult case and see what courage will 
do. A young man from the country applied at various 
places in the city for something to do. He was un- 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


219 


educated, unmannered and uncouth. They laughed at 
him in his home and in the fields about when he said 
he was going to the large metropolis to get a chance to 
rise in the world, for he was too ignorant to know what 
to do. “You don’t know enough of the world to go to 
the city,” they told him. “Well, I can’t learn to swim 
till I go where there is water,” he replied. Once in the 
city, he was laughed at there for his fixed country ways. 
In a few days he was thoroughly discouraged, yet he 
had courage. The only way of keeping alive was by 
working for a dollar a day, and this he did while he 
struggled to find out what was necessary in order to 
succeed. 

His goal was a fixed one; he intended to throw off the 
crude habits of country life, a self-inflicted misfortune 
among most farmers, and get up in the world in some 
honorable way. He knew his goal; he did not know the 
road to it, nor even the direction in which it lay. He 
knew what was honest. It was not setting his mind to 
say that he would do no dishonest act, for obstinancy 
comes from a specific and not a general determination. 
In two weeks, by faithful toil, he proved his value to be 
more than he received. Any person can do as much. He 
did not labor to be watched; when he knew no one could 
see him, he still kept on, and results justified an increase 
of wages to slightly more, which, in a month, became 
nine dollars a week. 

Now he began to feel independent. He asked ques¬ 
tions, took notice of men in better positions than him¬ 
self, and found out something new each day. The goal 
before him was to rise in the world, although he still 
had no knowledge of how it would be done in his case. 
He wished to go back to his country home, and prove to 
his old friends that they had laughed without cause. 
This he determined to do. In the class of laborers with 
whom he was associated there was not one who had any 


220 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


ambition; most of them saw nothing better than what 
they then had; they lived from day to day, from hand 
to month, and a few hoped for good fortune in some way, 
either by change of political parties in power, or some 
other notion of demagogues. This young man saw that 
they were all destined to be merely low laborers, for 
they did not determine to rise. He made up his mind 
that will-power must set the goal. 

A friend of his at the place where he lodged told him 
that he needed more education. When asked what kind, 
he was informed that grammar, spelling and pronuncia¬ 
tion were the essentials, to which a knowledge of common 
arithmetic should be added. For a few cents each, copies 
of the required books were obtained, and he set to work, 
unaided, to learn what he could. There is not a laborer 
in New York City who would buy books on grammar, 
arithmetic, pronunciation and spelling, or any one of 
them; and there are not ten laborers in America who 
would do it; yet all of them howl at the misfortune that 
keeps them poor. When once the will sets the goal of 
ambition, it takes a heart full of courage to execute its 
behests. 

Any person now bowed down by the misery of poverty 
may find out what to do to get out of the slough, if there 
is a will to get out; and it does not require that the way 
be seen, known or understood. Let but the mind be 
made up, and the body will act. Any human being who 
is grieved at the unfortunate turn of fate that bars the 
way to success, who wishes to turn this defeat into suc¬ 
cess, who wishes it hard enough to will it, may accomplish 
it in the fullest measure; but there must be a making up 
of the mind that is all earnestness. Few care to do this; 
they prefer to have the golden apples drop in their laps 
from tlfe clouds overhead. The young man from the 
country had decided to rise; he looked with pity on the 
laborers around him; he knew that they could better 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


221 


themselves, for lie felt sure that he could do so in his 
own case, which was a hard one; yet how he could not 
tell. 

He toiled away at the books night after night. The 
spelling book first interested him; he could understand 
it better. Three hours a night are eighteen a week. All 
outside attractions were nothing to him. He had a talk 
with a nice gentleman, who saw his ambition, and who 
advised him to attend church on Sundays. He followed 
the advice unostentatiously. He talked with men, but 
did not force himself upon them. 4 ‘Can a laborer rise in 
the world V 9 asked a correspondent. “If so, what is the 
best advice in starting to do so!” “Get a few books of 
common studies; insist on learning how to spell, pro¬ 
nounce, talk grammatically, and do ordinary arithmetic; 
go to church every Sunday; talk to your superiors, and 
find out all you can . 9 ’ Any man, young or old, who does 
this much will soon find himself above the ranks of mere 
physical labor. 

Our young man found that it was not so easy to under¬ 
stand what was required in pronunciation as in spelling. 
His plan was to read the book through aloud, so that he 
might hear the sound of his own voice in uttering the 
words. He heard educated men talk in various places, 
and caught the sounds of words. His memory thus be¬ 
gan to grow. Out of a sermon he would collect fully one 
hundred words, and compare them with the book on 
spelling. Once in a while, though not often, he had the 
privilege of talking on the subject with some person who 
could give him information. After once the ice was ~ 
broken and he began to understand the rules of pro¬ 
nunciation, he made rapid progress. Then came gram¬ 
mar, which he dreaded. It was all Greek to him. He 
read the book through twice very* slowly and aloud. A 
dictionary was necessary, and this he bought. Some in¬ 
troductory words in the grammar seemed to be aband- 


222 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


oned as the study proceeded, so he merely marked the 
meanings and went ahead into the parts of speech, and 
it was all very dark to him. 

While plodding along in this vale of discouragement, 
he got acquainted with a laborer who could not read. 
He was so ignorant that he could not tell one letter of 
the alphabet. He was about twenty years old, and had 
come from a mountain home far away, where they never 
saw a hook or paper in use. “What are you in the city 
for?” “To get a living.” “What will you do after you 
find out that you are able to get a living?” “Don’t 
know. ” “ There is but one other thihg to do, and that is 
to die. See these men about you? They know nothing. 
They work with their arms and legs. Every one of them 
could get up higher, but they are not willing to use their 
heads . 9 9 These remarks came burning out of the country 
boy’s heart; they impressed the mountaineer, who 
wanted to learn the alphabet, and he became a sort of 
pupil of the ambitious boy; he called once a week, and 
the latter found how much easier it is to learn a thing 
himself if he tried to teach it to another. This is very 
true. The little episode turned out to be the starting 
point in a new career, for it sent the mountaineer up 
into the realm of ambition also, and he suceeded in many 
aftersteps. 

It was a severe test of the will-power, when the gram¬ 
mar proved too much for the country boy. He did not 
like to ask the necessary questions of his elders, for he 
feared to intrude too much on their good nature, beyond 
getting general advice. So he read the book through 
a third time, and in so doing found it possible to discern 
the simple parts of speech, as the article, the noun, the 
pronoun, and sometimes the verb. In this he aided him¬ 
self by the practice of copying a sentence and then 
marking the words that he knew. It was in so doing 
that he realized his inability to write plainly. An old 


223 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 

man, who kept a second-hand hook store, told him what 
to buy, and showed him how to hold the pen. It was not 
long before he improved in this art. 

He gained some knowledge of the rudimentary con¬ 
struction of grammar very soon after this, and was 
pleased to know that he understood every one of the parts 
of speech. It was with unusual pride that he meditated 
on the fact that no living being had given him one bit 
of light. He had discovered it all himself. The use of 
cases in pronouns had a fascination for him, and he 
learned to say I and he, me and him correctly. This 
change came to the attention of his employer one 
day. It was also noticed among his church friends, who 
were not altogether cool to him. Such a man is bound to 
attract attention. Will-power never strives alone in the 
haunts of one person’s life. Grammar, now that he saw 
it, really changed his use of language to such an extent 
as to command the attention of others, was to him a mag¬ 
net of attraction. It is surprising how rapidly a little 
bit of learning will accumulate force in its progress. 
Once he was able to catch hidden meanings, he plunged 
ahead, and found the higher books of rhetoric and litera¬ 
ture awaiting him, while arithmetic now became easy to 
understand. 

He was too valuable a man to be lost sight of. A 
vacancy above him soon occurred; and no life is kept 
crowded down when its wings are spread to rise. He 
was soon earning one thousand dollars a year. At this 
time pride did not trip him. He kept to his books all 
the harder; for, as he once said to his employer, he saw 
clearly that it was his books alone that took him out 
of a position of nine dollars a week to one worth more 
than double. He found that the little volumes that were 
everywhere for sale at the stores were so written as to 
enable any person, however stupid, to understand them 
if there was a disposition to do so. “What I did not un- 


224 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


derstand, I would read, then lay aside and sometimes 
read again, repeating the process till I did understand 
it. I also started the worst case of ignorance I ever saw 
along the same road, and he has conquered.” Here he 
referred to the mountaineer. Both careers proved suc¬ 
cessful in the highest degree. Where was the cause? 
What was the source of that cause? 





Strength of purpose develops magnetism. 

This is the Forty-fifth Principle. The case we have 
given at some length lends its answer to the questions 
we have asked. What could have caused an ignorant 
country boy to rise out of his condition, to acquire an 
education, to succeed in making a fortune, to go back to 
his old home, pack up his time-worn parents, and take 
them to a sumptuous home in the city? What could have 
done this? Every ignoramus in that country region ex¬ 
claimed, “Luck.” This is a false answer. Luck played 
no part whatever in his rise. It had no more to do with 
it than did the moon or the north pole. Luck is some¬ 
times a factor in the turn of events, if we call the law 
of chance by this term; but it came not into the life we 
have mentioned. 

When the pleasures of carousal night after night were 
neglected for the study of books, not for mere informa¬ 
tion, but to really fit the young man for a better plane of 
labor, there was no luck at work. When repeated read¬ 
ings of that abominable grammar did not shed light on 
the science, he did not throw the book down, and go out 
for a pitcher of beer. What luck was at work when he 
read the volume again? What luck was shaping his 
career when a fellow laborer, blear-eyed through con- 


THE ESTATE OP WILL-POWER 


225 


tinuous soakings of beer, laughed at him because he pre¬ 
ferred the companionship of books that he could hardly 
understand to that of men whom he understood too well? 
Not for a moment in all his career did the element of 
luck play any part whatever. But, says some one, his 
rise to a better position was due to good luck. Not by 
any means. There are all grades of employment, from 
the humblest to the highest, and some one must fill each 
position therein. No person holds a position forever. 
The place hunts the man. He who is ready is the one 
wanted every time. This toiler made himself ready. 
There was no luck in his dropping into the place that 
awaited him. 

What was the cause of his success ? Will-power. But 
what was the origin of that will-power? It was not 
magnetism. It was nothing but a blind energy. This 
we must examine. Such an energy is possessed by many 
laborers; probably by millions now in this country, who 
can never get any further along for the reason that the 
spark is lacking. Let us imagine any one man to be the 
type of these millions who are destined to remain always 
at their present low level. We look into his character, 
his habits, his good qualities and his imperfections, and 
we find him to be possessed of unlimited energy, all run¬ 
ning wild. He works hard and faithfully, thinking it will 
always insure him employment if he does a full day’s 
work. He wishes and even hopes to rise in the world, 
but to him the idea of rising is in no way connected with 
progress, the taking of steps, or the movement up into a 
higher stratum. 

Right here the secret is found, for his life is a drift 
around a whirlpool without direction ahead. When 
asked if he is satisfied with his condition, he almost con¬ 
vulsively shouts, No. When the further inquiry is made 
as to what he hopes for, and how he hopes to get it, he 
invariably says something in this vein: “I want better 


226 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


wages and cheaper foods. The pay I get is too small; 
the price I pay for living is too high. Something is 
wrong in the government. They ought to tax the rich 
more and make them pay us more. There will be a politi¬ 
cal party come to the front some day that will do this for 
us, and every laboring man will vote for it.” No wonder 
the fellow is poor and wretched. No wonder the millions 
of toilers are hopeless and tied hand and foot by the 
cords of misery. 

To every one of them there is just the same opportunity 
of succeeding as came to the ignorant country boy, 
whose story is absolutely true. They and he possessed 
the same common energy; but theirs was blind, spending 
itself in the whirlpool of wasted forces; his needed the one 
instigation to give it magnetism. So all energies may be 
turned into a direction, set going on a road, and be made 
magnetic. What was the spark? It came to him in the 
one idea of rising out of his low condition. It furnished 
a goal. He looked ahead. Other laborers hoped for 
higher wages, lower prices of living, and cheaper beer; 
things that never occur together. This toiler did not 
look for higher wages in his rank, but resolved to get up 
out of and away from that rank. Thus he fixed a goal. 

Toward this goal he looked at all times. His thoughts 
bent to it. He allowed no deviation from that straight¬ 
forward energy of his mind, which saw no other goal 
to be desired; not temporary ease, not pleasure of the 
heart, not carousals, not the rainbow-chasing of dema¬ 
gogues who allure toilers away from themselves toward 
the dangerous shoals of anarchy, which is the real pur¬ 
pose of political harangues; he threw all his life into that 
one struggle, which had for its helmsman the straight¬ 
forward thought of rising in the world. Such thinking 
is sure to develop magnetism, and if you do not believe it, 
try it. Such thinking collects together the discordant 
energies of the mind and body, unites them as one puis- 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


227 


sant army of purpose, and hurls them in solid column 
against the ranks of the enemy of success, breaking the 
illegitimate array into fragments. Try it. 

Nothing is more certain than that most persons possess 
energies which are allowed to run to waste. Nothing is 
more certain than that such energies, if their confusion 
is allayed, may be marshalled into an aggregation of fear¬ 
ful aggression. Here the will is needed, and the will is 
in itself an active progressive force, not a standstill 
energy of the mind; it is an open mind, always looking 
for means to affect an end. Development of the will re¬ 
quires the cultivation of straightforward thought; the 
road ahead may lead about and deviate a hundred times 
or more, but its end is never abandoned. The will sets 
the goal of purpose. This is the spark that ignites the 
fire beneath the boiler. This is the one distinguishing fea¬ 
ture that separates the millions of laborers who cannot 
hope to rise, because they do not decide to rise, from the 
one ignorant fellow who is sure to forge ahead simply 
because the will sets the goal of purpose. He wants, 
wishes, proposes, decides to rise in life; and that is all 
that is needed to start the magnetism of his whole soul, 
mind and body into the way of succeeding. He is in 
earnest. 

It is not the frothy impulse of a quick nature, but the 
steadfast earnestness of courage. Aggression requires 
courage. Success in anything, large or small, must 
brush little natures aside, for they block the road; and 
malice barks in proportion as the earnest man rises in the 
world. It takes courage to pass them by. One man, a 
pitiable weakling, says: “It hurts me to find that I 
acquire enemies as I climb higher. I almost wish I had 
never climbed at all.” He must know that hatred has 
existed since the beginning of time, and will continue for 
some centuries yet; and no man or woman has lived well 
who has not felt the sting of savage humans among civili- 


228 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


zation. Courage is not so hard to hold under circum¬ 
stances of success of any kind. It is when the failures 
come, when the tide hears you away for a while down to¬ 
ward the opposite goal, when little things prick up 
their ears and bite viciously at your feet, when a cloud 
of impenetrable thickness shuts out all view of the world 
about and you are wrapped in the gloom of despair; at 
such times courage is the highest virtue. 

In a way, as a type of needed courage, take the case of 
the country lad, who could not get one ray of light out of 
his grammar. Imagine, if you will, any ignoramus of a 
laborer taking a grammar to look at, much less to study. 
You and his acquaintances would laugh at him. Even 
if not laughed at, if he could go away to some room 
where he would be alone, you can very well imagine him 
squinting at the covers, turning the book upside down 
a few times, hunting for some tobacco and beer adver¬ 
tisements in the opening pages, placing leaf after leaf 
carefully over each other, until he gets to a few long 
words that are hieroglyphics to him, then hurling the 
volume across the room, and settling back in his chair, 
clasping one knee in his two hands, and go to dreaming 
of the time when some political party will bring pros¬ 
perity to the laborer. Yet the fellow has energy. He 
lacks the will-power to set a goal that will cause him to 
move on. Any goal that is not ahead, or that does not 
require progress, is like a stake in a whirlpool around 
which one is ever dashing, and which, when reached, 
means nothing. 

Better than leaving a farm and going to the city to add 
to the crowd of non-producers, is the reverse determina¬ 
tion of staying at home and rising there; for the great 
centers of population must be fed by farmers; their cloth¬ 
ing comes from wool cut from sheep raised by farmers, 
or from cotton cultivated by farmers, or from linen spun 
from flax planted and grown by farmers, or from silk 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


229 


made by worms tended by farmers; their shoes come from 
cattle, sheep or goats reared by farmers; their houses are 
built of wood that is produced outside the cities, and all 
that is used or consumed must come from these sources. 
The real man brings something from the soil; and, great 
as others may be, there is no vocation that can place a 
human being above the directing genius that compels 
nature to serve him. Yet the reverse seems true. 

Why the noblest of all callings, that which harnesses 
the mighty power of the sun and whips along the ele¬ 
mental steeds, should be forced down to the lowest strata 
of humanity, and there degraded, we cannot understand. 
Many years ago we succeeded in convincing a young man, 
who sought the glories of the legal profession as the 
highest end of living, that God held other professions in 
higher esteem, none being more honorable than that of 
honest farming. The laughter of his friends, the ridicule 
of his enemies, did not deter him from following the ad¬ 
vice. He made the art of farming a noble one. From the 
soil he won all the comforts, all the luxuries of life. The 
same brain energy that can wrest a large income from the 
practice of law can secure a larger one from the soil, and 
the wear and tear are lessened. 

When ignorance directs the plow the house gets a 
mortgage. It requires thought to make an acre yield a 
hundred dollars a year, yet he did it; a business skill is 
necessary to turn a hundred acres into ten thousand 
dollars, or five hundred into fifty thousand dollars; not 
one farmer in a dozen can get much more than twenty 
dollars from an acre; yet brains can take a fortune every 
year from a farm; and the best of it all is the fact that the 
man whose head holds the brains need not lift a finger. 
He may be in the city much of the time, or in the country 
amid the scenery he has helped to beautify, enjoying 
the products of nature and the healthful air of the fields. 

One more case may be cited as showing the way in 


230 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


which a seemingly impossible feat may be accomplished 
by the magnetism of the will. A young man desired 
above all things else to become an orator; not a mere 
talker, shouter, haranguer or demagogue, but a real 
orator, earnest, eloquent, convincing; not that species 
of speaker that drives the public away or is tiresome to 
listen to, but a man such as those who have attracted 
great crowds, and the more they talk, the more they are 
desired. This young man at first did not select his goal, 
therefore he had no magnetism in the line of this effort; 
for it is one of the laws of magnetism that the goal must 
be decided upon. 

The concentration of the energies of the body, includ¬ 
ing the mind, the nervous system and all the faculties, 
acts very much like the lens that collects scattered rays 
and directs them into a certain fixed channel of force. 
The sun is hot enough to make the blood suffer from its 
intensity, but it has not sufficient heat to set any sub¬ 
stance on fire. The steel and flint throw a faint stream 
of delicate sparks that cause the fine tinder to ignite, 
owing to its supersensitiveness. The sun cannot ignite 
the tinder, even when its rays are the hottest. A lens 
collects scattered lines of light, and throws them to a 
single line, the power of which is due to the fact that this 
single line is the concentrated force of many; yet it can 
set fire to nothing that is not readily ignited. Add to 
this lens another, and still another, till countless thou¬ 
sands of rays are focused upon one point, and you can set 
a ship on fire miles away. 

By this it is seen that energies that are scattered are of 
less use by far, and in most respects are quite worthless, 
compared with the united force that is derived from their 
combined efforts. A thousand little powers, helpless in 
their separation, are resistless in their union. The 
mighty river that bears upon its brow the giant craft 
of nations could hardly float a log on any one of its up- 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


231 


land streams. It is in exactly this wise that the will¬ 
power makes man a conqueror when he fixes a goal and 
concentrates all his nature upon the purpose of reach¬ 
ing it. He may become what he will. 

Without losing sight of the young man who desired to 
attain the highest success in oratory, and who had to con¬ 
tend with difficulties that seemed insurmountable, as we 
shall soon see, we must examine the conditions that give 
a man the power he requires. It must not be supposed 
that any one thing will accomplish this end, nor that so 
multiform a use as magnetism may be summoned by one 
bend of the rod. There is no single line of training that 
develops this power, except for that single line. All that 
is said in other parts of this volume should be under¬ 
stood and acted upon, and a general all-round cultivation 
of magnetism should be adopted. 

*t**t**t**»********t^************ , t********t****K********t*‘ 

i 46 I 

►*..*..*..j..*..*..*..*.«*«*j*«*.»*».j*»*«.*«.*.«*.***.*..j* 

We may become what we will. 

This is the Forty-sixth Principle. Any man, any 
woman, may determine the fate that awaits the un¬ 
folding of life’s history. If you could but know this, and 
know the method by which you can shape your own 
career, it would be worth half the years of living, would 
it not? We stand ready to prove the fact even to the 
uttermost; to prove it in your case, or in the life of any 
person. If you wish the matter put to the test, we will 
do that. Here is the full explanation, the process of de¬ 
velopment, the line of action. Nor is it so hard as it 
might seem. 

In the first place it is necessary to assure those of our 
students who are careless in their mental conclusions, that 
the action of the will is easily accounted for by every-day 


232 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


rules, and is not dependent upon the occult powers so- 
called. To use the will is not to exercise faith. What 
that is may be worthy of discussion, but at this place we 
are considering the simple processes of our open, unhid¬ 
den natures. We need not say more. This book has 
none of that overflow around its statements of myster¬ 
ious sayings and problematical phrases that charlatanry 
must fall back upon in order to impress. The pur¬ 
pose here is to show how much vitality there is in the 
plainest processes of life. Truly it would seem as if there 
were no limit to what a man can evolve out of himself 
if he will take Thought thereto. 

You may become what you will, and it makes no dif¬ 
ference how foreign to your nature the goal may be; if 
you are really in earnest, it is yours. That you must be 
thoroughly and completely in earnest requires no itera¬ 
tion. That much is taken for granted. In order to be 
in earnest it is necessary that you believe in yourself 
and in the possibility of success. Able men have always 
believed in themselves and in their power to accomplish 
what they undertake. This is not faith, at least not in 
either a religious or an occult sense. It is plain, every¬ 
day common sense. How absurd it would be to start out 
for an end that you had no expectation of reaching! 

Suppose the great Englishman who when a lad decided 
that he would be the foremost power in that nation—sup¬ 
pose that he really never thought he would succeed; how 
could he be justified in retaining the ambition! It is not 
a blind faith, a trusting faith, to reason out that a certain 
goal is ahead and within reach of the man who is fully 
in earnest, and who proceeds to reach it by every available 
means. He is not absurd enough to select a purpose that 
he himself discredits; nor is he crazy enough to shut his 
eyes in choosing, so that he sets out upon an impossible 
journey by a road that leads the other way. He has many 
reasons for believing in himself. 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


233 


♦ t * 4 ** 4 * 44 ** 4 * 44 * 44 * 4 ** 44 ** 4 * 44 .* 4 * 44 * 44 * 44 ** 4 * 44 ** 4 . 44 . 44 ! 4 



^^♦^ t 44 * 44 * 44 * 44 * 44 * 44 * 44 * 44 * 44 * 4 ^ 44 * 44 * 44 . 44 . 44 * 44 . 44 * 4 


r 

The average daily life is surrounded by thousands of 
details. 

This is the Forty-seventh Principle. The man who 
selects the goal of his ambition wins because all the 
operations of his own existence begin to throw their in¬ 
fluence his way. This means a great deal. There is no 
silent, mysterious force playing occult pranks. We as¬ 
sume that he is active; if he is not, he cannot hope to suc¬ 
ceed in anything. A magnetic man or woman loves to be 
doing something, to arise in the morning ready and eager 
to live a full day through, to see as many books, persons, 
friends or not, as many transactions and activities as can 
be well crowded into a single day. 

Sometimes these thousands of details appear in what 
is read and in the long procession of thoughts that pass 
in line through the mind; they are pictures of action, and 
make their impressions vividly upon the personality. 
How many things have occurred to-day? Oh, a few only; 
none of importance, you may reply. This is not true, 
unless you are living aimlessly. Take a pencil and paper, 
and note down the myriad activities that have been going 
on all around you; and if none of them touched you, your 
day has been a void. It is not necessary that many of 
them should affect you, but some should interest you. 

It has been estimated that an active man is surrounded 
in his daily life by fully ten thousand details out of which 
he could draw at will such as he chose; and sometimes 
it seems as if an excessively active life must be centered 
within a hundred thousand details. We write to explain 
what is meant by this claim, for it means much to an 
earnest individual. Suppose a woman is a lover of 
flowers; she has her books on botany, containing thou- 


234 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


sands of ideas from which she can draw one or more as 
she pleases; then there are references to the science in her 
ordinary reading; the paper, the magazine, the history, 
the novel, all may in some brief way present information 
within the line. 

Now she sees pictures in books, on the wall, and else¬ 
where, which are bettered by the broad fields that stretch 
away to make the landscape; and here and there are 
garden plots bearing more items of interest, all in the one 
particular line of her fancy; yet these are but a small pro¬ 
portion of the thousands of details that lie within her 
reach. No person makes use of a tenth of these; few 
ever see one-fiftieth of what is taking place; but a mag¬ 
netic person does. He has reason to see and to appreci¬ 
ate the value of what transpires; and this leads us to a 
most important law in the present study. 



Magnetism attracts its own kind from surrounding 
details. 

This is the Forty-eight Principle. Given ten thou¬ 
sand details of occurrence in the ordinarily active world 
of one man’s life, and a hundred thousand in the day of a 
very energetic person, the question arises, how many of 
them will touch him? If he is a man of magnetism, he 
will exclude the most, and draw the few that are in the 
line of his interests. This we all know in a general way. 
The banker sees banking events chiefly; the grocer lives 
in an atmosphere of flour, spice, beans and goods of his 
trade; the lawyer watches the courts and human discords; 
the clergyman has an horizon of his own, and its fruitage 
is church membership, missions, donation parties and 
slippers; the doctor feels the pulse of the day’s events in 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


235 


new serums, chemicals, powder, internal explosives and 
nitroglycerine pills; and so each sees and seizes details 
that escape all the others. 

Take any example and follow out this law of magnetic 
attraction, and yon will see it ever at work shaping the 
career of each individual that comes under its operation. 
Here is a young man who determines to become the judge 
of a court of high grade, not a justice of the peace, nor 
a criminal magistrate. He aims toward the Supreme 
Bench. If he is fully in earnest, he will get to that posi¬ 
tion; and it is not by any means easy, for such an ex¬ 
alted rank requires many, many years of preparation. 
Yet he will get to the goal. He must be in earnest in 
selecting it. It would be the height of foolishness for a 
man in mature life, without training or experience, to 
select such a goal; he could not be in earnest if he did so. 
But the younger man will succeed in this most difficult of 
undertakings; and it is safe to assert that no person ever 
set out to win this particular end that has failed. 

The justice of one of the Supreme Courts of this coun¬ 
try told in private the story of his ambition, and the way 
it worked out. The principle is exactly in accord with 
ours, and the case is fully a representative one. He made 
up his mind fully to reach that goal, and in his own State. 
He was a student in a law office, where books were at 
hand for study. He desired to become a Supreme Court 
judge. Naturally he began to look up the duties of the 
judge, and found that they involved a general knowledge 
of the law, a full knowledge of law libraries and digests 
that told where cases could be readily found, and experi¬ 
ence in the rules, customs and precedents of practice and 
procedure. In addition to this, the judge must be per¬ 
fectly familiar with the rules of evidence, those that were 
imperative and those that were discretionary, and he must 
be able to maintain the dignity of the office. 

A young man who would like to be a judge is quite dif- 


236 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


ferent from one who is determined to be. The former 
still has all his energies; the latter focuses them upon the 
one goal, and his magnetism becomes powerful and ir¬ 
resistible. It draws out of the thousands of daily details 
those that appertain to his one resolve; and it is interest¬ 
ing to see how this is done. Little things that are of no 
value to the general drift of mankind appear to him im¬ 
portant. In conversation he hears a thousand remarks 
during a single day; and he is where he can hear such 
as are in his line of study, of which number perhaps three 
or four only are worth retaining. They relate to some 
judge or some judgment, to some unusual decision, or 
some ruling that has been passed upon in the courts above 
the trial sessions. These are attracted to his mind, and 
held there as the magnet draws little particles of iron 
from a mass of dirt. 

Not only in the thousand remarks of an active day, 
but in the numberless items of his reading will he catch 
^uch ideas as add to his general knowledge and grow into 
his being. No other individual on earth collects as much 
under one idea, unless the same determination has been 
formed; there may be fifty thousand men with a similar 
ambition, but not with a full mind made up to achieve 
it. With him it is different. He is in deadly earnest; 
and, day by day, there is an absorption of ideas out of the 
great fund of details that surround his life. It is neces¬ 
sary to practice law. He does this in all the integrity of 
his soul. In every trial he is armed with a flood of de¬ 
cisions. When the settled law of his own State is un¬ 
disputed he does not drag in the far away decisions of 
other States and thus win dishonestly, although the op¬ 
portunity to do so is everywhere offered him. Thus a 
case was won in a trial court by a firm of lawyers who 
cited over sixty decisions of the far Western States, all 
agreeing to their proposition, while the other side did 
not know enough to look into the decisions of the State 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWEK 237 

where the trial occurred, for they were the other way and 
took precedent. 

This young man was always armed with the law, and 
amazed those about him. The judges came to respect his 
own sincerity, for never had he tricked them by trying to 
force down their legal throats a wrong conclusion, if 
there was such to be had. He had, in the first ten years 
of his practice, won the admiration of every lawyer and 
every judge within the wide range of his acquaintance, 
and many a judge remarked that when he started in to 
state the law, he was sure to succeed. His positions were 
tenable, subject to human error, of course, and always 
as liable to be wrong on problematic points as other 
learned minds; but he had a judicial clearness that en¬ 
abled him to get the right logic out of mooted questions, 
and this was the result of his years of absorption. A re¬ 
markable thing above all was the fact that he cared more 
to assist the courts in arriving at the true conclusion than 
he did for winning his clients ’ causes. 

To view this method in the abstract, one who is not alto¬ 
gether honest might say that it is the lawyer’s first duty 
to win his case, as his fees and living come from his 
clients, and his obligation to them is reciprocal. There¬ 
fore he should let the law’s correction come as a second¬ 
ary consideration. There are two reasons why this sug¬ 
gestion is not a worthy one. In the first place, a lawyer 
ought to be an honest man; and if such are hard to find 
in the profession, it does not follow that honesty will 
not succeed better than first successes. In our opinion 
there is no real magnetism unless it is honest; for a dis¬ 
honest man cannot make himself in earnest and 
thoroughly sincere, no matter how hard he may try to 
crowd the belief into his mind. If every person doubts 
the wonderful power of an honest, actively aggressive 
life, let him try it. In the hands of able men integrity 
is a magnet capable of controlling all opposing interests. 


238 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


Not to pretenders, not to those who pose as modest and 
sincere, nor to that class of clever feigners of every 
noble virtue, does mankind pay homage long; but to him 
who is proved honest will tribute come. In a world 
where white souls are almost unknown, in an age of 
rarest truth, the honest man, who couples ability with his 
deeds, must draw mankind to him. He may control 
them at will; and experience shows that even the hypo¬ 
crite, finding integrity such a magnet, has educated 
himself to become honest. So many a pretender, who 
has joined the church for fraudulent ends, has finally 
been truly converted and has repented. 

For another reason the lawyer who wishes rather to 
see justice done than to win his clients 9 cause, will in¬ 
crease his practice. Few such lawyers exist. Most of 
the bar are human, and love the limited glory of having 
won the case in question. Says a rich man: “You 
secured the verdict for me. You are a clever lawyer. 
But your methods were not sound. I shall hesitate 
to employ you again, unless I have a very bad case. ’ ’ It 
may be known that capable business men are even 
keener in mind than the best lawyers; they know how 
much real integrity an attorney has, and they are shy 
of him in the future. Trickery may be concealed from 
the jury, but never from the court and rarely from the 
client. There are some lawyers in existence, though 
very few, who will not advance a wrong legal proposi¬ 
tion to the consideration of the courts, and they are safe 
counsellors. They will not go into court on a side that 
must depend upon such a wrong, and the public soon 
finds it out. Litigants who wish to win when wrong, 
may employ the other class of attorneys; but every sen¬ 
sible human being who is in the full possession of his 
faculties desires to know the law in advance, and to act 
accordingly. 

Too often, altogether too often, the lawyer advises his 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


239 


client that the law is on his side, or is sufficiently in 
doubt or unsettled to warrant making the fight, when 
he well knows that he will be defeated unless he can 
change the facts a trifle, and then he commits suborna¬ 
tion or perjury in order to save himself from his client; 
and most clients are willing to vary the truth just a little 
bit, a harmlessly little bit, rather than be forced to yield 
to a hated rival. All this is wrong. It never touches 
the honest lawyer, for he will not permit it to. Being 
capable, learned and truthful, he becomes a power in his 
profession; and, wherever there have lived such men 
as these, they have reaped larger fortunes, won greater 
victories, and held higher honors in their communities, 
than the so-called smarter class. 

We see the same principles holding true in the life- 
history of the man who determined to become a judge 
of the Supreme Court. What were his chances of suc¬ 
ceeding? He had ability, not only in large degree, but 
in the very largest, and this must have followed from 
the fact that he kept himself constantly at work acquir¬ 
ing knowledge in his line. He had a judicial mind, 
which means that he could sift facts, dispel confusion, 
get at the pith of a controversy, and apply the logic of 
the law in such a way that its judgments were right. 
Some one has said that a judicial mind is the ability to 
discern what the law ought to be when it is not known 
by precedent decisions. At any rate, such a mind is 
acquired from habit and study, and it takes years of 
careful examination into the reasoning of courts to get 
at the true lines of logic. But it is attainable by him 
who wills. 

Then he was quick to get at his knowledge. This 
was also an acquired talent. Over and far above all 
else, he was honest. This was publicly known. It 
could not have been concealed after a leading lawyer, 
tired and sick with the nauseating trickery of his pro- 


240 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


fession, arose in court one day and made the following 
statement: 44 The facts in this case are agreed to; 

there remains nothing bnt the law to he settled. The 
learned counsel confronts me with an array of decisions 
that I am satisfied completely remove all doubt. I 
would not be true to myself, nor to the court, if I con¬ 
tended against them when I cannot do so in my own 
conscience. However, I am free to say that, when this 
cause was first brought to my attention by counsel, who 
came into it before I did, I advised my clients and their 
attorneys that they were in the right. I had found de¬ 
cisions that seemed to incline to that view; but what I 
did in a casual way my learned brother has done in 
another way not possible to counsellors who are rushed 
in their work by a practice that is far too extensive 
to be exact. I will submit what decisions I have found.” 
There was no doubt he had done all he could for his 
clients; yet he seemed discouraged at the greater scope 
of investigation employed by the lawyer to whom he re¬ 
ferred. 

The end was now in sight. No judge has opportunity 
to read up on all the questions before him. He is 
wearied by court trials, but yet must study into the long 
hours of the night to keep within the plainest lines of 
duty owed to litigants, and here he stops in despair. 
Lawyers, by briefs and references, call his attention to 
precedents; but these must be read to ascertain the pre¬ 
cise points on which former decisions of law courts 
have rested, and much reading and study are necessary. 
The lawyer whose history we are taking as an example 
was clear-headed enough to see that a general, indis¬ 
criminate practice of his profession would bar the way 
to the goal he desired. He said that he would earn less 
money, and confine himself to the larger cases which 
presented mooted legal propositions, for then he would 
keep in touch with the moods of the highest courts. To 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


241 


liis surprise lie found himself employed by litigants who 
sought him for just such purpose, and the fees ^ere 
much larger than they would have been had he taken a 
greater number of clients. Lawyers feared him, for he 
was too thorough, too exact, too exhaustive in his 
researches to please them. They worked hard to place 
him on the bench of the trial courts, the jury courts 
as they are known. His aim was the Supreme Bench. 
When the appointment came, he declined it. His in¬ 
come was more than ten times its salary. Again it was 
offered him, after a lapse of years, and again he de¬ 
clined it. He had won the goal, and more beside. He 
will yet accept such a position if his views do not ma¬ 
terially change. 

Any person may accomplish that which the will dic¬ 
tates. If we had cited the case of the young man who 
sought to become a great lawyer, we might have shown by 
easier methods the certainty of winning such a goal. We 
went further, and presented the resolve of one who 
aimed at an office that is seemingly an impossible one, 
as it depends so much on the accident of fortune of elec¬ 
tions and appointments. Let us see how much chance is 
involved. When a man has made his mind great with a 
knowledge of the law; when he is quick, ready, apt, clear, 
forcible and impregnable in his legal reasoning; when he 
can protect the interests of litigants by correct judg¬ 
ment; when he is feared by the great lawyers of the 
bar; when he is known to be honest; when, if he were 
judge, his decisions would save many protracted ap¬ 
peals to higher courts with their endless costs, how 
long do you think the profession or the great public 
will allow that man to remain in private life? A de¬ 
termined man may acquire all the qualities we have 
named; he is then sought after for the position on the 
bench. History has proved this to be always true; and 
there is to-day room waiting in every State and in the 


242 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


national courts for such men. The goal is attainable. 
Will what you will, it is yours if you are in earnest. Be 
in earnest in the exercise of good judgment when the 
goal is selected; do not choose the impossible, for that 
would dethrone your earnestness; go straight on to the 
end. It is yours. 

We come now back again to the young man who 
wished to rise to eminence in oratory. The person in 
question was in no wise adapted to that profession. His 
personal appearance was awkward, uncouth and in every 
way against him. Some elders told him that his face 
and shape of the head indicated some mechanical occu¬ 
pation as best suited to him. Still his heart was set on 
the idea that he did not belong to the laboring ranks for 
life; he had ambition for something higher, and knew 
nothing more to his taste than oratory. Under advice 
of a successful speaker, who said that the use of speech 
developed the art, he attended the meetings of a debat¬ 
ing society with disastrous effects, not for the society, 
but for himself. He had not then learned of the fact 
that Daniel Webster, the greatest orator the world ever 
produced, had failed utterly in his first address; nor 
that Beaconsfield’s first speech in Parliament was a 
dismal defeat. He had none of the elements of oratory, 
except the determination to be one. 

It is surprising that with nothing to encourage him he 
ever kept his course on toward the goal, which in fact 
he had not fully selected. All his friends and family 
were against his plan; all his faults of body, of voice 
and of mind were barriers to success, and it seemed 
as if all the great orators of history were made of stuff 
quite different from his own nature. All this while 
he wisely kept at work earning a living, for the study of 
oratory does not much interfere with any other matter. 
One night, after listening to the burning words of a 
great speaker, and being thrilled as no other influence 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


243 


could do, realizing that nine-tenths of the power of 
a thought is in the way it is uttered rather than in its com¬ 
position, he went out under the starlit sky, and walked 
through the fields far from the town, as if his nature 
needed the fullest breadth for the deciding of this 
momentous question, and there and then he selected 
his goal. He would become a great orator. 

Once his mind was made up the power of magnetism 
was felt coursing through all his veins. This of 
itself surprised him. The next day he seemed a giant 
within himself. It was a novel experience. It made 
him see the world through larger glasses than the orbs 
of his own vision. He was to himself the central figure, 
and the map of the earth started from his feet and 
radiated in all directions to the farthermost limits. This 
was conceit, he thought, and began to fight it down; 
but it made him humbler toward his fellow beings, so 
he believed it to be rather a sense of responsibility 
under the great pledge he had made to his life. Still 
the magnetism that followed this concentration of his 
energies upon one focus was distinctly felt, and could 
not be deemed aught else than the force of his will. It 
was a grand experience. It seems strange to you who 
read this that magnetism does spring up from so simple 
an act; but when a person determines to reach a certain 
goal, and the will-power decrees it, the act is not simple. 
When the countless energies of human beings are whipped 
into one concentrated and concerted line of action, the 
result must of necessity be powerful; and this is what 
the will is capable of doing. 

Now arose the influences described under our principles. 
His life, like that of every earnest person, was sur¬ 
rounded by thousands of details, from which his magnet¬ 
ism was to draw such as its interest might attract. He 
heard much of great orators, he read of them, he saw 
the essentials in part that went to make them impres- 


244 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


sive. Little things filled his mind, each of no value 
alone, hut in combination they rounded out the struc¬ 
ture of his thoughts. Then he caught ideas that shed 
rays of real light upon his purpose. It was easy to 
listen to speakers, for there were two or more oppor¬ 
tunities for hearing pulpit orators on Sundays, and 
other occasions during the week. Then a majority of 
the lawyers of his county came to court sooner or later, 
and found it necessary to address juries, to which might 
he added the customary political harangues in which 
men tried to see who could outdo all the others in the 
elasticity of the truth. 

To sum up in this part of his observation, he came to 
the conclusion that ninety-nine speakers out of every 
hundred were exceedingly tiresome and worse than use¬ 
less. He saw juries writhing under the wearisome talks 
of attorneys; he saw congregations get sleepy under the 
dutiful regime that compelled them to listen to sermons 
that were altogether tiresome, lacking all charms of 
pnagnetism and gradually keeping would-be worship¬ 
pers at home as the only means of defense; he found 
lecturers growing unpopular because they struggled to 
hold their influence over audiences, not by reason of 
their oratory, hut by their sensational babyisms, their 
monkey-jokes and their exaggerated facts—the three 
ideas of modern lecturers who do not use the stereopticon 
for holding the interest of auditors (?) who see rather 
than hear. The false orator was a shouter. Small boys 
and timid women were induced to believe that noise was 
oratory, and they did not care for it. 

Here were elements of discouragement enough to 
drown out the laudable ambition of any person, and they 
have kept most of the best men out of this most exalted 
profession, leaving the cheap talkers to prove to the 
public that oratory is not a pleasing art. Would he, or 
should he, refuse to follow out the line of his ambition 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 245 

because it was degraded by karanguers and maudlin 
skouters! This inquiry seemed like a stopping place; 
but lie did not bait long. Wkat was true oratory! be 
asked bimself over and over again. He did not dare to 
ask others, for be feared tbeir ignorance, and knew they 
were not able to speak from a knowledge of the truth. 
The inquiry was an important one—What was true 
oratory! 

He tried hard to secure such an answer as would give 
him the real facts, and these he very much desired as 
guides to his future conduct. He traveled to large 
cities to hear famous orators, and to analyze them; to 
listen to better lecturers than came to his town; to at¬ 
tend the great churches, where more successful speakers 
had drifted by the law of gravity; and in this way he 
obtained better ideas. One man was an elegant enunci- 
ator; he spoke his vowels, consonants, syllables, words, 
phrases, clauses and sentences with a polished and 
beautiful clearness that was charming, and it almost 
seemed as if this were the secret after all. He had read 
in books that humanity was distinguished from the 
lower animals by the power of articulative speech, and 
this particular speaker had developed such power to 
its highest art. Could it be that perfect enunciation 
made the orator! He reasoned it out, and suspended 
his judgment until he could go further in the analysis. 

Next in the charms of speech came an orator who did 
not use the common run of voice so often heard among 
the less effective speakers. One man had a very high 
pitch, and although he varied to some extent, he made 
it his prevailing voice; and the more he shouted, the 
higher up the scale the voice went, until every ear was 
sore and every brain irritated by the harsh screech. 
Then came the resolution never to inflict such pain 
upon his audiences. Another speaker had a more agree¬ 
able pitch; it was located in the middle part of the range, 


246 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


and this was a tremendous relief from the other fellow 
who went so high. Still, when he got to shouting, as 
most of the failures do, the pitch would tend upward 
a little and was correspondingly tiresome, even painful. 
He asked himself, what use was it* to inflict soreness 
upon the sensitive nerves of the audience, when the chief 
purpose of oratory was to charm and to win. It would 
be just as reasonable to court a beautiful girl by thrust¬ 
ing pricking needles in her ears; such courting would 
not win her. He could see one reason why oratory was 
on the decline, why juries were uncertain factors in 
courts of justice, and why religion was suffering so 
terribly at the hands of modern preachers. He could 
easily guess why John Wesley and George Whitefield 
were able to make hundreds of thousands of converts, 
and change the history of all England by the magnet¬ 
ism of their voices. 

One more speaker aroused his interest. It was one 

who had no note in his voice lower than the middle 
tone. He was more popular, for the voice was incapable 
of producing pain. Think of that in oratory! 'A man 
who causes the least pain is the most popular; or, in 
reality, the least unpopular. As long as churches en¬ 
dure and jury trials are ordered under constitutional 
law, so long will some portion of humanity be coerced 
into listening to speeches, and perhaps in daily life the 
monotony of duties will make even the lecture field a 
welcome change with all its pangs. This was the way 
he reasoned. Discouragement was the natural conse¬ 
quence of such discoveries. Men, bright in some of the 
matters that involved the exercise of judgment, lacked 
common sense enough to know that a harsh voice, a 
one-pitched voice, an unmodulated voice, or a shouting 
voice could not serve any of the legitimate uses of the 
mind. Most persons who fail in life, when expecting 
success, are blind to the essential fault. 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


247 


There was one man who really charmed his hearers 
by the pleasant variations of his voice. It was not con¬ 
fined to the low register, like a lion growling in a cavern 
from which he conld not get free; it was not kept in the 
middle realm of the scale; it nsed the upper notes rarely, 
but it played like a great organ through all the mar¬ 
velous beauties of song, leaping from note to note as 
the meaning demanded, and blending the whole into 
one harmonious expression. This was one of the uses 
of modulation. He noted the fine effects of pleasure 
produced by the quiet touches of the lighter tones, the 
solid stamp of character in the sturdy timbres that re¬ 
quired no shouting to make them impressive, the 
thunder peals in the occasional bursts of power, and the 
lightning of magnetism that sent its flashes over the 
whole structure; and this pleased him. So he began to 
think that enunciation, that perfect coinage of vowels, 
consonants, syllables, words, phrases, clauses, sentences, 
groups and paragraphs, each in the proper die, each set 
forth in place and proportion to suit the character of 
the thoughts with which they were burdened, was the 
first essential of oratory, especially as it stood for the 
best presentation of that one distinguishing gift that 
separated man from the brutes, while modulation was 
the second essential, carrying as it did the charm of 
variation in the music of speech. 

By this time his attention was attracted to the tones 
of a voice in a man whose every note was peculiarly 
rich. Then he asked himself,—Is it possible that one 
human voice may be so different from another; so differ¬ 
ent from all others! Is it not made by the larynx, and 
is not every larynx made by the Creator! How, then, 
can one voice be harsh, crude, rough, raw, rasping, 
aspirate, breathy piping, twangy, scratchy, or some¬ 
thing else, while another is rich, melodious, resonant, 
clear, fine, beautiful, exquisite, and silvery in tones! 


248 UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 

This was a serious problem. It betokened an examina¬ 
tion into the well-knowm art of voice-building, to see 
if such defects were curable. What was his own voice? 
It was unpleasant. No one cared to hear it. He at¬ 
tended still his debating society, but he was rarely ever 
sought for his powers of speech, and what he did say 
seemed to assist in thinning out the attendance. 

He talked with some acquaintances who had been 
trained by teachers, and he learned enough to ascertain 
that a slight improvement had been made, but not as 
much as might have been had the pupils taken inter¬ 
est in themselves. Not one in a hundred make the 
progress that is possible under such help. He learned 
from good authority that a new voice could be built in 
two years, and he went to work upon it. The larynx 
changes its size, weight, strength, force and character 
with the training it receives; but the real nature of the 
voice is in the instrument as a whole that produces it, 
and this instrument is the pharynx and mouth, the hard 
palate or sounding board, the soft palate or muffler, the 
resonant chamber, and much else. He worked hard. 
Little by little he acquired a new voice; by changes so 
slight as to be unobserved, he took on another character 
in tone; he had an instrument of a million strings; he 
could use the timbres, the qualities, the stresses, the de¬ 
grees of pitch, force and time; he found that there were 
mental colorings that gave meaning to sound, and 
emotional colorings that stamped the heart and soul 
upon his language, and the more he delved, the more he 
saw ahead of him to acquire. It was all wonderful. 

Surely the art of speech was not one to be considered 
the birthright of every fellow who thought he could 
talk because he had a voice and something to say. 
When our would-be orator had discovered the value 
of the many acquisitions by which the thoughts are ex¬ 
pressed, he believed that the secret was his; but, alas! he 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


249 


had a still longer road ahead of him. The arts and em¬ 
bellishments served to furnish the best channels for his 
thoughts, but what were the thoughts themselves worth ? 
The merchant marine is best served in its carrying of 
goods by the most convenient and most effective means 
of transportation; canals, rivers, seas, lakes and oceans 
on which to journey, and every variety of ship in which 
to store the merchandise; but the real value of the latter, 
the source of its supply and the ports to which it is to be 
conveyed, are even as important as the means of con¬ 
veyance. He found a parallel truth in oratory. 

The question then arose, which was the better of the 
two? He studied orators, and analyzed their subject- 
matter and its manner of delivery. In such cases as 
those of Edward Everett and Rufus Choate he found 
that the charm is entirely lost in the absence of the 
speakers, and this he attributed to the magnetism with 
which they presented their thoughts. Among living 
orators he found that some had very good matter but 
wretched manner; others had poor matter, and one only 
of the many effective means of delivery; yet all had the 
audacity to pose as representative speakers. He saw, 
he realized, he felt in every fibre of his being what a 
magnificent power that man would be who could combine 
the thoughts of highest value in sentences of transcendent 
skill, and utter them in those best uses of the voice that 
nature with a lavish hand would gladly bestow upon him 
who was willing to toil for the guerdon. Over all there 
was needed the inspiring force of magnetism that lighted 
up the man, the mind, the thought, the language and 
the graces of art, making them a combined power not 
to be resisted by any counter human energy. 

“The soul’s dark cottage, battered and decayed, 

Lets in new light through chinks that time has made , 

Stronger by weakness, wiser men become, 

As they draw near to their eternal home.’’ 


250 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 



Closing* the mind injures it. 

This is the Forty-ninth Principle. In a number of 
ways this law has been referred to in the present volume. 
The will-power is an active and aggressive energy, a 
throttle open with a guiding hand upon it, never re¬ 
laxing its control. A closed mind may be pictured in 
one or two illustrations, either as a horse balky and 
moveless, or running away unguided, or else as a loco¬ 
motive stalled and stationary against all efforts to start 
it, or sent out with steam on, and no person in the cab 
to control it. The closing of the mind is not a shutting 
of it up against all efforts to move it, but a set action or 
inaction that admits of no alteration. 

The refusal to change an opinion is a closing of the 
mind, for it is not open to influences either of right or 
wrong. In exactly the same sense the determination to 
do a certain thing, or to pursue a certain course of action, 
closes the mind when it refuses to desist, stop or change 
its method of progress. In other words, it is equivalent 
to saying that this particular thing shall be done, even 
if I know it to be wrong, or the plan of action I have 
entered upon ceases to meet with my approval. “When 
I say a thing I mean it,” says the shallow mind. 
“Everybody knows that what I promise to do I will 
fulfil,” says another. Here is a vast difference. Noth¬ 
ing can be more praiseworthy than the fulfi lm ent, of all 
proper pledges, promises and appointments. The busi¬ 
ness of life depends upon that. 

The mind is excused from every improper loud agree¬ 
ment, contract, promise or threat. The law states as 
much. A large number of contracts are annulled by 
the courts. A note even, which is a commercial bank 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


251 


bill in some of its effects, is set aside as between the 
maker and payee, if made under mistake, in error, for 
lack of sufficient consideration, through deceit, or is 
obtained by other improper means. But the kind of 
mental closing to which we refer is that which takes 
away the continual watchfulness of the judgment and 
stops the motion of the will. A potentate said: “I will 
slay the first person I meet.’ ’ He met his daughter, and 
slew her; not for any fault of hers, not to aid himself 
or his people, but simply because he had said he would. 
No pledge, however solemnly made, can rise to the dig¬ 
nity of even the smallest obligation when its purpose, 
its method of execution, or its effect is useless or wrong. 

When the Roman lawmaker made death the penalty 
of an offence, and his son was the first offender, he was 
right in ordering his execution if the law was right and 
the penalty not too severe in any case; he should not 
exempt his son from a desert which some other man’s 
son would have to meet, although he had the power to 
save him. We are now dealing in questions of abstract 
justice, but are free to say that the parent is always 
justified in saving the life of his offspring, no matter what 
the offense or how deep the shade of guilt. In blood there 
is no sin that merits death. The family ties are stronger 
than all laws of earth. Much less is it justifiable to 
keep a foolish pledge. 

The fulfilment of any proper agreement, promise or 
appointment is a matter of necessity. None such must 
ever be broken if there is a possibility of preventing the 
breach. It often requires a constantly open mind to 
avoid disappointment in such matters. All persons 
should know what agreements are pending, what appoint¬ 
ments remain to be fulfilled. It is wrong to make one, 
then shut the mind in forgetfulness and pay no further 
attention to it. Too many persons are careless in a 
matter of this kind. A promise is made to a friend; the 


252 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


time comes around when its execution is due, and the 
promiser is totally oblivious of the fact; the friend may 
know that the breach was unintentional, yet the same 
degree of respect and confidence will never be shown 
again. Weak it was to make the promise and close the 
mind to it, weaker still to show no concern over the loss 
of trust that must follow. 

Parents are freely willing to make all sorts of promises 
to their children, but when they shut their minds to the 
keeping of them, an injury has been done to themselves 
and to the little ones. On the other hand, the continual 
making of threats is reducing the magnetic quality of the 
mind. Most threats made to children are abandoned. ‘ ‘ If 
you do that I will surely whip you,” says a parent. The 
child does the thing inhibited, but does not receive the 
whipping. Seeing that the threat has no potency, it goes 
on, day after day, defying its parents, and soon becomes 
unruly. The question of governing children has many 
phases. A proper threat of punishment should be ful¬ 
filled if the child merits it. An improper threat should 
be abandoned, as where the mother said: “If you touch 
that flower I will whip you until you cannot either 
stand or sit.” The child did touch the flower, and did 
not reach that condition in which it was impossible to 
stand or sit. Another mother said: “If you speak one 
more word I will punish you.” We cannot conceive 
of any situation where the utterance of a word requires 
punishment, and there is no necessity of keeping the 
terms of the threat. Better than these methods of gov¬ 
erning children is that which employs magnetism and 
needs no penalties. 

We trust that the difference between closing the mind 
against doing a thing and against ceasing to do it is 
clearly seen. The effect is the same in its injury, for it 
involves the same principle; and one is as stubborn as 
the other. Thus if a person refuses to consider a matter 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


253 


that requires attention, or if he will not look into it far 
enough to see whether it requires attention or not, he 
closes his mind; while, on the other hand, if he decides to 
do a thing and goes ahead blindly to the end, or persists 
against his judgment in the attempt to do it, he likewise 
closes his mind, though against the ceasing of it, which is 
in no way at variance with the principle. 



Discretion is the magnetism of judgment. 

This is the Fiftieth Principle. Most mistakes cause 
regret; some repentence, others remorse. All are detri¬ 
mental to the union of the energies of life. The confu¬ 
sion and scattering of these powers necessarily bring dis¬ 
turbance in the forceful run of magnetism, especially if 
a reversal of action or a complete rearrangement is re¬ 
quired. Discretion is a rare gift, but it is a magnetic 
one. It is often cultivated by the weighing of results 
under the standard of past experience, generally of others. 

Nothing can be more satisfactory than the skilful 
judging of probable consequences; and few things give 
a man more confidence in his mental powers than to 
find he had formed correct opinions. It is not at all 
essential that the element of guesswork or the law of 
chance be depended upon, for they involve the flavor of 
lottery, and the more one indulges in that flavor, the 
less he will develop his powers of judgment and discre¬ 
tion. It is true that when these efforts come to a stand¬ 
still, and all ahead is clouded and dark, there can be 
nothing done but to await the turning of the hand of 
fate. Here the skilful mind sees the alternative, and 
prepares to accept either without loss. 

In the anticipation of trouble the magnetic person uses 


254 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


all the discretion possible, looking at every kind of out¬ 
come. He says, or acts in effect as if to say, that he will 
do his best to avert the misfortune; but if it must come, 
he reasons thus: “It will occur in a certain way; or, if 
not so, in another way; or else in a third. If it should 
happen in the first way, I will act so and so to meet it; 
if in the second way, I will change my plans, and give 
it a welcome by doing thus and so; but if it comes in the 
third possibility, I shall meet that by such and such 
methods.” It will be seen that he is not to be surprised. 
Every futurity has one, two or more chances of happen¬ 
ing; and discretion reasons out what these are, how they 
will befall and the probable effects. This much being 
understood, the next thing is to learn what to do in any 
event, so as to meet the exigencies. Thus discretion not 
only teaches a man to avoid mistakes and troubles when 
they are merely portending or are unnecessary if due pre¬ 
caution is taken, but it teaches him to be prepared in 
advance for trouble that cannot be averted. When it 
arrives, it is generally too late to meet it with a minimum 
degree of annoyance. It is a stitch in time that saves 
nine. 

The use of discretion is one of the bulwarks of success 
in the career of every man who rises in the world by rea¬ 
son of his native ability. This principle is seen with the 
lawyer in his practice. One of the keenest attorneys was 
answering the statement that the advocate who had the 
final argument in a case always had the advantage. The 
counsel for the plaintiff in a civil action, or the prosecu¬ 
ting officer in a criminal trial, addresses the jury last, at 
least of the lawyers. In some States the judge delivers 
his charge before the summing-up speeches of the lawyers 
are made; in other States he is required to follow them, 
so that the erroneous effects, if any, may be counteracted. 
The warmth of effort and of appeal must come from the 
men who strive to win for their clients. The lawyer for 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 255 

the defence does his best; all the surprises, all the strong 
points of the cause have been quietly conserved, and he 
makes mountains of them in his eloquent speech. Then 
the attorney on the other side proceeds to demolish the 
effect. 

It has been frequently said of Daniel Webster and 
Rufus Choate, who were undoubtedly the giants of their 
day in the legal profession, that whichever side was in 
the right would win when these two advocates opposed 
each other in the same case. In one instance, Webster 
was on the wrong side, for the litigant who is at fault 
needs a strong lawyer to save him; but so hard did he 
fight that Rufus Choate declared it took him a whole day 
in his final speech to undo the effect of Webster’s great 
address to the jury. This shows that the last speech is 
not always easier in a trial. But when a man is in the 
right; when his lawyer is not the abler of those engaged 
in the struggle; when he must sum up to the jury, and 
then be followed by an address of tremendous power, 
skill, adroitness and fallacy of such a nature that the 
common minds of the jury are unable to extricate the 
truth from this entanglement, then justice fails, unless 
the defendent’s counsel is equal to the danger. 

Solid men who are not accounted great or brilliant 
have, by their discretion, been able to thwart these influ¬ 
ences. Said the lawyer to whom we have referred: “The 
advocate who speaks last to a jury has the advantage 
only when his opponent is careless in the preparation of 
the case; otherwise the defence is in the best position. 
I remember that the hardest victories I have won have 
been in cases where I appeared for the defence and had 
the most eminent lawyers against me. I borrowed 
trouble, as I call it, though I mean that I anticipated 
trouble, and prepared to meet it. I never allow myself 
to be surprised in a trial if I can avoid it. My plan is 
to go into my office at night and alone, and there address 


25 6 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


the jury aloud in my imagination. I take the opposite 
side of the case. Talking aloud excites thought, makes 
new ideas and gets the machinery of the mind in opera¬ 
tion. I have a pencil and a writing pad. When an idea of 
force comes to me, I write it down at once. I do not wait a 
minute. The best thoughts come out of the everywhere 
and are evanescent. I secure many valuable things in 
this way. I tear the defence to pieces. I picture my 
client as the man who is wrong, and the plaintiff 
as the one who is right. I invent, by every kind of ingen¬ 
uity, the points that must most impress the jury. Now, 
in an ordinary important trial, the summing up is limited 
to an hour on each side; yet I put in three or four hours, 
and out of the mass of points I make I find a certain 
number of strong ones that are really the most essential 
to that side. A new light comes to me; I see through the 
plaintiff’s case, as though it were transparent. I see 
what must be the position, or at least what ought to be 
if the counsel for the plaintiff is thoroughly familiar. In 
the greatest of such causes I have talked to imaginary 
juries in my office a half a dozen nights or more, to get 
the other side exhausted of all its points. When the 
trial is reached in the courts, I know more about the 
plaintiff’s case than his attorney does, as I have several 
times proved. I anticipate all his argument, and gener¬ 
ally all his testimony, though some bits of evidence can¬ 
not be foreseen. Why, in that last cause, tried a month 
ago, I spoke for the defence three full hours, closing 
just as the court adjourned late in the afternoon, the 
worst time of all for a defendant to stop talking to the 
jury. I was forced to this by the strategy of the plain¬ 
tiff’s lawyer, who kept his dilatory arguments going 
till noon time. Yet in my speech, I covered all the ground 
of the defence; I anticipated all the points the very able 
advocate would make in his address of the next morning; 
I answered them very fully, even exhaustively, and I told 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


257 


the jury quite vividly the very points he would present to 
them; and although he had all night to get his offset to 
this, he could do nothing but go over the ground I had 
covered. He labored very hard to make the points appear 
new, but he failed utterly, and when the jury had retired 
he said to me, very savagely, 4 Which side of this case 
are you on, I would like to know,’ meaning that I had 
argued both sides.” The action of so keen a mind must 
be ascribed to his discretion in foreseeing events by 
analysis, and preparing to meet one alternative or the 
other. 

The same results have been attained in matters not 
relating to court trials, although they present the story 
of life in all its forms. Edwin Booth found, on one of his 
tours, that his costumes and scenery had parted company 
on the way to a certain town, the former going in one 
car by a wrong train, and the latter in another car by 
another wrong train. He was assured that both would 
be on hand in time for the performance. Instead of 
worrying unnecessarily about the affair, he first ascer¬ 
tained what could be done to hurry them on. A number 
of telegrams were sent, and no stone left unturned; so 
all was done that could be accomplished in this direction. 
Then he imagined himself on the stage without scenery 
and without costumes suited to the character; or with 
the scenery, but with no costumes; or with the costumes 
but no scenery. Then he and his manager discussed 
these possible situations, and prepared to meet each in 
turn. In the town in question there were no costumers, 
and the theatre itself had but three regulation scenes. 
These things are known in advance. One of the regula¬ 
tion scenes was a wood or landscape consisting of some 
trees and a stretch of country; but nothing in the play 
called for that. Another was an ocean view, called an 
horizon by actors. The third was an interior, called a 
fancy chamber. Only this last could be of service in the 


258 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


play in question, which was the Merchant of Venice. The 
first act opens in a street in the city; the landscape scene 
and the ocean could not picture the canal or the street for 
them, and the fancy chamber did not suit either of them or 
the subsequent movement of the play. Here was a vexing 
problem. If no costumes came, it was decided that an 
explanation should be made to the audience, and the 
actors go on in their ordinary clothes, while the stage 
should be set in an exterior and the performance called 
al fresco , or in the open air. If the scenery came, and not 
the costumes, it was decided to allow the company to 
wear their ordinary clothes, while Mr. Booth appeared 
in a black gown, which he might easily borrow from a 
friend whom he knew, and who had one that had been 
worn there by a supernumerary on a previous occasion. 
By this planning in advance, all confusion was avoided on 
their arrival; all fussing, fuming and worry was laid 
aside. It so happened that the scenery did not arrive, 
but that the costumes came in time, and a beautiful al 
fresco performance was given with a delightful smooth¬ 
ness. Had the deciding of what to do been left till they 
arrived, the actors would have been worn out, and their 
magnetism would have been lost. As it was, Mr. Booth 
was at his best, and the audience seemed not to realize 
that the scenery was lacking. When the local manager 
made the announcement that the scenery had been de¬ 
layed by the railroad, but that al fresco performances 
were in style among the elite, it pleased them. 



The use of the will assists in developing the will. 

This is the Fifty-first Principle. A good quality grows 
on itself by using. All the virtues gather strength by 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 259 


the earnest practice of them. Love is enhanced by true 
love; charity made a fixed habit by the act of judicious 
giving; hope is brightened by the upward gaze of faith, 
and what is worth improving is made better by the very 
act of improving them. The will is likewise developed by 
making many tests of its action, providing these efforts 
are discreet and founded in good judgment. 

All unmagnetic persons lack energetic wills. Only 
those who are blessed with positive magnetism are able 
to exert the will at all. Others think they are showing 
will-power when they are merely exhibiting obstinacy 
under a closed mind. Thus a verdant fellow, who had 
once or more times tried to drive his father’s hogs to 
the brook, only to have them go the other way, and who 
therefore drove them from the brook, and thereby got 
them to go to it, went to a large city. He was met by a 
lifelong friend, whom he never saw before, but who pre¬ 
tended to know him and his antecedents; and he took 
pleasure in correcting errors, and they parted company. 
Soon another friend came along, and explained to him 
that the foregoing stranger was a bunco steerer, who was 
pumping for further use. “Oh, I’ll know him if I see 
him again, ’ ’ said the countryman. But the second friend 
really did know him after thinking it over; he told him 
who he was, asked him if his name was not so and so, 
his father such and such, and soon proved his title to 
his confidence. They then went around together for mu¬ 
tual protection, until the verdant fellow was robbed in a 
very quiet manner. He then saw through the trickery, 
though he required a policeman to explain to him that the 
first stranger had pumped the facts out of him and given 
them to the second stranger. Later on a cousin, whom he 
had never seen, met him by appointment, and was refused 
an audience, in the belief that it was a third stranger. In 
such ways the absence of discretion and will-power lead 
to disaster. 


260 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


In contradistinction to this case was that of a green 
fellow from the country, who was told that he would he 
victimized if he went to the city. He liked the idea, took 
a hundred dollars in bank bills, and went. On his arrival 
he was met by a green fellow fully as much in need of 
protection as himself, and who told him that he was 
afraid to go about alone, as he was never in the city be¬ 
fore. The first verdant seemed to sympathize fully with 
him, and stated that it was his first trip. 1 t I have a hun¬ 
dred dollars here,” he said, showing the amount. The 
eyes of the second verdant glistened, and the first one saw 
it. Intuition dwells in humble minds as well as the astute. 
He caught the idea at once, and proceeded to catechise 
his friend. The latter made every effort to get him into 
certain streets, but it was to no avail. At length they 
parted. 

He inquired of policemen where to go, and found their 
information to coincide, so he deemed it trustworthy. 
Soon a very nice and pleasant faced young man met him, 
and called him by name; it was wrong as usual, and the 
stranger expected to be told the true name, but he got 
only the confirmation of the first name, Johnson. “I 
guess I have hit it by accident,” he probably thought. 
“Silas Johnson is my name,” said the country fellow; 
“and my father, Joshua, is a trader in horses up in 
—ville. His brothers are Peter Johnson, a blacksmith, 
and Henry Johnson, a farmer, six miles from town.” So 
he went on, and they parted; but not before the hundred 
dollars had been displayed. Soon came stranger number 
two, a rather sedate man, with a hymn book under his 
arm and a drawl in his voice. He stopped, lifted his 
hands in surprise, looked for a moment, then rushed to 
the green fellow, saying, “Well, well, of all pleasant sur¬ 
prises this is the best. Delighted to see you. Don't 
know me? Well, you could not, but you are the perfect 
image of my father. Your father and mine were second 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


261 


cousins, if you are Silas Johnson, of-ville. If not, 

I have made a mistake. Let us see; your father’s name 
was Josh Johnson. They called him Josh, hut I know 
it was Joshua. Joshua was a good man in the old Bible 
days; and you had two uncles, Peter Johnson, a black¬ 
smith, and Henry Johnson, a farmer, who lived some 

miles out from-ville; let me see, it must be six miles. 

Well, how are you?” They chatted for a while. This 
verdant fellow had given false names to the first stranger, 
and had made them up on the spot; and as soon as he 
heard this invention he knew that the two men were in 
league to defraud him. 

To him it was a pleasant experience. He showed the 
man the hundred dollars, and wondered how he could 
lose it. The first attempt was being led to a crowd and 
jolted; hut he held his hand on his money and jolted back. 
When this experiment was repeated, he caught the hand 
of his aggressor, and found that it led to a third stranger 
two feet away and behind his hymn-book friend. This 
man he hung to like a vice, for he had a fearful power 
in his hand; and although the scuffle caused great commo¬ 
tion, he clung to the thief through thick and thin, and 
delivered him to a policeman. This occurrence puzzled 
the second stranger; he made a subterfuge attempt to trip 
the country fellow, who observed it and said nothing. 

Matters proceeded in this way but with new 
attempts to decoy the fellow, until at last they got to 
the shells used in the game of monte, and this interested 
him exceedingly. The hymn-book man was quite unused 
to it, and wondered how it was done. He tried it though, 
for it was very plain that any bright mind could detect 
the plan of operation. The first time the stranger tried 
he won a dollar, then two, then five, then ten, and he never 
lost. The money was genuine, no doubt. The green 
fellow was asked each time to try it, but he replied, 4 ‘You 
try it once more.” After the ten dollars were won by 


262 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


the hymn-book man, he ventured fifty cents and was suc¬ 
cessful; then a dollar, and equaled it. He got quite ex¬ 
cited, and his friend, the hymn-book man, urged him to 
put up his hundred dollars all at once, and make another 
hundred on top of it. He said he would try five dollars 
first, which he did. All the crowd knew he had a hun¬ 
dred dollars, and those who knew the game expected 
that he would be permitted to win the five dollars and 
that the hundred would come out at once. He did win 
the five dollars, and he put them in his pocket. They 
expected him to rush out his full fortune, hut he merely 
said, ‘ 4 Fellers, I come to this yere city to see if I could 
keep from bein’ robbed. This yer feller with a hymn 
book has been showin’ me about for the past few hours, 
a-doin’ his damdest to rob me, but I hain’t that sort.” 
The bunco steerer slinked away. The case shows the 
power of the will as a means of protecting oneself from 
the deepest intrigues. 

A young woman states a case that shows the effect of 
a constant practice of the will. She loved a young man, 
who had proposed marriage and been accepted. He 
seemed to regard her as a weak object in his hands, to 
be molded by him as he pleased; and she could hardly 
succeed in protecting herself from his aggressions. He 
meant to toy with her affections, and had the advan¬ 
tage of his superior will coupled by her ardent love for 
him. This was a combination that could hardly be 
resisted. One day she read of weak girls and the fate that 
generally befalls them; also a bit of advice, telling girls 
to exercise their will-power to the utmost. She did not 
propose to offend the young man, not to act in a severe 
and prudish manner, not to show petulance that might 
make him regard her as a bad dispositioned girl. On 
the contrary; she treated him graciously, and at times, 
when he seemed desirous of taking advantage of her, 
she looked him fully in the eye, and sweetly said “No.” 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


263 


Her account to a lady friend showed that as she uttered 
the word she exerted her will-power to the utmost, and 
the decisiveness was stamped on the tone of her voice. 

A young man who was tempted to drink had been 
so far overcome by his companions as to be unable to 
resist the use of beer, which is the beginning of the 
drunkard’s fate, and on one occasion he had taken a 
glass of wine, and later on a drink of whisky. As he had 
scoffed at the idea that beer would lead to the habit of 
fixed alcoholism, he was overwhelmed with grief at the 
thought of being so deceived. He sought advice, and 
a good friend told him that his will-power would save 
him, and explained the process of magnetism in its use. 
He resolved to test the matter. At the next temptation 
he said no, and acted no decisively, and won. Again he 
was tempted and sought the aid of his will-power. It 
grew stronger as he used it. He then went in the study 
of magnetism, and fortified his will-power to such an 
extent that he could repel all temptations and not offend 
his acquaintances. His whole life was revolutionized. 

Intensity is the arousing of the vital centers first; 
whence their power travels to the whole body. When 
the will is at work, the mind usually starts the action. 
Where there are ganglia, or where gray matter is found, 
there the electric batteries exist. The brain is the cen¬ 
tral furnace of magnetism. The mind is either positive or 
negative. If the former, it sets the will going, if it does 
not close; but if its energy shuts up its operation into a 
fixed refusal or a fixed, unswerving course, it is obstinacy, 
and all magnetism is at a standstill. If the will 
keeps alive and active, becoming a moving progression 
of force, it is soon as powerful as the limit of magnetism 
allows. These laws are important ones and should be 
understood. The so-called iron will is as useless as a 
furnace of blazing fire when it ceases to give out its 
energies to some governed purpose. It may be observed 


264 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


in any person who is without donbt highly magnetic that 
he becomes tense as the power takes on strength. This 
is best seen in watching a speaker addressing an audience, 
or a person in conversation, who shows magnetism. Re¬ 
laxation, or what is called the devitalizing of the body, 
is just the opposite; then every power drops; the vital 
centers are disconnected from the muscles; the mind even 
is languid, and there is no control over self or others, 
although the functions are in every way normal. 

In watching persons who display magnetism, it may 
be seen that those who are obstinate, no matter how 
strong the will may be, are not tense nor warm in vitality. 
They are coarse, ugly, cold, stalled, and things of fixed 
and mindless strength. It is true that a person should 
be stubborn in the right rather than weak and overcome 
in the wrong; but he never gets on in the world. A horse 
that balks is perhaps better at the edge of a preci¬ 
pice than one whose knees are so fragile that 
he cannot keep from toppling over. The wishy- 
washy characters are objects of pitiable contempt, 
while the stiff and unreasoning rocks who cannot 
be moved except where they wish to go, and as far as 
they wish to go, are objects of disgust. We like not the 
silly fool from the country, who gave up his money to 
city sharks at the very first suggestion; we like not the 
stem fellow from verdant regions also, who locked up 
his money at home, and took but little with him for fear 
of the loss; but, rather, we like the greeny who carried 
the roll of bank bills in his trousers ’ pocket, who told 
everybody he had the hundred dollars, who showed it to 
the sharks and sharpers, and who held on to it in spite 
of the deepest intrigues. That fellow was not obstinate; 
he was not afraid; he was strong, and conquered. That 
is true magnetism. 

When the mind is sending forth its streams of energy, 
then the will is most dangerous, most effective and most 


THE ESTATE OF WILL-POWER 


265 


far-reaching, for it is most active. To sustain the will, 
there must be a constant propulsive force, and this comes 
from tensing the mind, which imparts intensity to all 
the faculties. By this process we have the secret of suc¬ 
cess in the use of the will. The study of this one phase 
of magnetism is in itself important. As has been said, 
the best opportunities for observing the action and effect 
of intensity is when a person is speaking, either in a con¬ 
versation or an address. The orator that wins furnishes 
an excellent illustration of this use. 

We recall a session held one Sunday afternoon under 
the auspices of a certain church. A large audience had 
been attracted out by the promise of interesting speakers. 
The first address was brief and merely introductory. The 
second was made by a stranger, who talked smoothly, and 
what he said seemed to be freighted with information 
that aroused attention, but in twenty minutes this grew 
tiresome, owing to his personal lack of vitality. It was a 
relief when he sat down. The third speaker began in 
the same way. He was all devitalized. In muscles, in 
attitude, in the craning of the neck, in the languid flow 
of the mind’s efforts, in every way he was lacking in 
energy. Four men made preparations to go home; the 
children were restless, and the pastor looked sorrowful. 
This man came from a distance, and had a reputation 
in a far off locality. 

The four men looked at the door and measured the 
distance from their seats to the place of exit. They 
had their coats on their arms, their hats in their hands, 
but did not take the step that would start the journey 
home, for the speaker had shortened that craning 
of his neck, and was now becoming erect in attitude. 
Something in his legs raised him an inch higher; they 
were no longer languid. There was nothing sudden. All 
was quiet gradation. Once in a while a speaker who 
lacks magnetism is compelled to make a remark intended 


266 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


to shame his tired hearers. This results in needless en¬ 
mities. On the occasion in question the man did not 
resort to such measures. He saw the four restless audi¬ 
tors, and knew that they would slip out at the first lull 
in the proceedings. He did not say, “I will wait until 
those who wish to retire have done so,” but he gauged 
his own momentum, and knew that he would soon be 
well under way. He did not throw some intensely inter¬ 
esting remark to catch their minds as by a hook, nor did 
he promise great things as an inducement for his audi¬ 
ence to remain. 

Like a giant steamship getting momentum as she floats 

down the bay in the majesty of motion, he straightway 
swung into the channel of his power; yet without any evi¬ 
dence of change at any place of transition. His whole 
body became tense, in little gradations; his neck was now 
straight; his head rested upon a magnificent pair of 
shoulders, like a globe poised on the back of Atlas; he 
neither stormed, thundered, pealed, nor jerked. The 
floating palace was acquiring headway. The voice was 
so still in the quietude of its tones, now grew richly 
mellow. Ideas without effort flowed in an easy stream of 
power, while the arms rose in attitudes of expressive 
meaning. The man was becoming tenser in his body, 
though not by any means less active, for this quality 
does not mean mere rigidity. The four listeners, who 
were aiming to go out, ceased to gaze in side glances at 
the door; they turned around, and faced the speaker; 
the coats fell to the seats, and the hats got down under 
them by some sort of magic that was never explained. 

Then the power of magnetism was more and more 
felt. The voice deepened at times in a wonderful descent 
to the rich mines that were beneath the surface; it flashed 
rarely, but with beautiful effect, in the glowing streams 
) of light that came across the horizon; it moved in irre¬ 
sistible floods of power toward its goal, the greater ocean 


THE ESTATE OP WILL-POWEE 


267 


beyond; yet at no moment did the orator appear to 
labor. All was majestic, all at ease; yet every fiber of 
his body was alive. The eyes took on a new glow as 
the flesh became intense, and one seemed to keep pace 
with the other, as though the laws of cause and effect 
were at work. The gleam of the eye is closest to the 
brain, and that is nearest to the seat of the will-power. 
Exertion or straining was not apparent. 


.♦♦♦*..*..*..*..j*.*..**.**.**»*..*..*..*..*..*.«$».*..*..*. 



The will is strongest when its intensity is smoothest. 

This is the Fifty-second Principle. Some students 
have fallen into the belief that a physical, a nervous 
or a mental straining is necessary in order to produce 
the best results in the development of the will. Such 
struggling leads only to distraction and confusion; the 
very influences that are not advantageous. We have 
seen men of genius strive to send forth their magnetic 
powers by tearing their passions to tatters, as Hamlet 
would say; we have many and many a time noted the 
heroic storming of some amateur tragedian, as he 
attempted to impress the audience with the idea that he 
was the greatest actor of the world; yet they, the aston¬ 
ished beholders, merely studied his grotesque move¬ 
ments in amazement, wondering what he was really 
trying to do. Cicero wearied his hearers at first by his 
excessive vehemence of manner, and would have been 
buried in oblivion but for that excellent charm of com¬ 
mon sense which told him of his errors. Genius thus 
may run away with itself. 

The most splendid exhibitions of magnetism, and the 

greatest, have been those wherein there was no struggling 
to send forth the will, no straining of the voice, no fevered 


268 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


pulsing of the nerves, no tearing of the mind, no severity 
of gaze; but, on the other hand, that perfect smoothness 
that is the result of a consciousness of supreme power. 
Then is a man or woman most dangerous. Quietude is 
deceptive, and the world is not on the alert. Expectancy 
is wanting, and there is no preparation for the coming 
conquest; no method of resistance has been adopted. 
One hardly knows the volume of power that is accumu¬ 
lated by intensity when aiding the will, if magnetism is 
already acquired. The three furnish an irresistible com¬ 
bination. In the unusual quietude of Mr. Moody, the 
evangelist, is seen the almost contradictory force of 
human electricity, ever sending out its influence over 
those who come within the range of his voice. He himself 
grows tense as he proceeds, but never strong; what force 
of tone he has is lacking in those bursts of thunderpeal 
that made Spurgeon, Beecher and Whitefield greater 
than all contemporary orators. Mr. Moody had full will¬ 
power, a vast fund of magnetism, and a steady, quiet but 
giant-like intensity. The will is the strongest when it 
is smoothest in its power. We have seen what it is; in 
another realm we will learn how to accumulate it and 
use it. 

it 

“The Will is God, the Will is man, 

The Will is power loosed in Thought; 

In Will th’ TJnfathomed Self began, 

In Will the lesser mind is wrought: 

Nothing is will-less entity: 

All one—to act, to will, to be. 

Me only is who wills to live 

The best his nature prophesies: 

Master of fate, executive 

Of self—a sovereign strong and wise. 

Art thou a pigmy? Courage, soul / 

For thee, as all, the Tdngly goal . 19 


REALM SIX 



High waves the laurel there, the myrtle flowers, 

And through a still blue heaven the sweet winds rove. 


Know’st thou it well? There, there with thee 
O friend, O loved one! fain my steps would flee.” 




THE ESTATE 

OF 

Personal Attainment 

AND THE 

CHARMS OF MAGNETISM 

H E who has yearned so long to go 
Over the lofty mountains — 

He whose visions and fond hopes grow 
Dim, with the years that so restless flow — 
Knows what the birds are singing, 

Glad in the tree-tops swinging. 

Why, O bird, dost thou hither fare 
Over the lofty mountains? 

Surely it must be better there, 

Broader the view and freer the air; 

Comst thou these longings to bring me — 
These only, and nothing to wing me? ” 

( 269 ) 


1 A sound as if from bells of silver, 

** Or elfin cymbals smitten clear, 

Through the frost-pictured panes I hear. 
I tread in Orient halls enchanted, 

I dream the Saga’s dream of caves 
Gem-lit beneath the North Sea waves! 

I walk the land of Eldorado, 

I touch its mimic garden bowers, 

Its silver leaves and diamond flowers! 
The flora of the mystic mine-world 
Around me lifts on crystal stems 
The petals of its clustered gems! " 


QHE raised up Kingu in the midst, she made him the 
greatest, 

To march in front of the host, to lead the whole, 

To begin the war of arms, to advance the attack, 
Forward in the fight to be the triumpher. 

This she gave into his hand, made him sit on the throne: 
By my command I make thee great in the circle of the 
gods; 

Rule over all the gods I have given thee, 

The greatest shalt thou be, thou my chosen consort ; 

Be thy name made great over all the earth. 

She gave him the tablets of fate, laid them on his breast.” 


( 270 ) 



The Estate of 
Personal Attainment 




‘T’VE rolled my limbs in ecstacy along 
* The selfsame turf on which old Homer lay 
That night he dreamed of Helen and of Troy : 
And 1 have heard, at midnight, the sweet strains 
Come quiring from the hilltop, where, enshrined 
In the rich foldings of a silver cloud, 

The Muses sang Apollo into sleep.” 



HARMS are embellishments of manner, of method, 
of thought, and even of feeling, that cannot fail 
to lend power and advantage to those who pos¬ 
sess them. A face that is ngly may terrify, and 
even hypnotize, because of its frightful effect; 
but no person wishes to win the will of another by putting 
to sleep the faculties that make the personality a prize 
worth winning. Said a man who loved, or thought he 
loved, an excellent young lady: “I could not secure her 
heart, but I was unable to reason in my mind that she 
ought not to belong to me. For this end I hypnotized 
her, little by little, until I had her consent. But she was 

271 










272 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


clay, nothing but clay. 'No enjoyment sprang from my 
conquest. A rag doll could yield to me as much. I turned 
about in my methods, told her the facts, and began the 
other way. By magnetism I climbed the ladder of suc¬ 
cess; by hypnotism I descended to the pool of remorse .’ 9 
The two directions are exactly the opposite of each other, 
and they lead to results that are antagonistic in every 
sense. 

There is a physical magnetism that sometimes car¬ 
ries things by storm. It plunges forward in a flush of ex¬ 
citement, and all things crouch before it. The vitality 
of the lion, the tiger or the bully is of this sort; and a tem¬ 
porary paralysis of the will-power causes the poor vic¬ 
tims of fright to remain powerless. In the same way a 
woman becomes speechless in the presence of a burglar, 
and many a man loses all control of himself under circum¬ 
stances that overwhelm him with alarm. This is due 
to the fact that the suddenness as well as the force of the 
shock stops the breath, and holds the heart still, making 
a display of strength impossible. A man cannot be brave 
if his heart will not beat. These bullying methods are 
not magnetic. This is not an age of animalism or of 
force among the most civilized nations. 

Leaving such brute energy out of the question we come 
down to the single fact that there is no way of securing 
control of individuals worth having, when secured, ex¬ 
cept through magnetism. This power uplifts each human 
being; it affects and brings him up to the standard of 
the person who exercises it, even though but temporarily. 
It wins, not subjects. It creates the impression that the 
superior being is one whom it is agreeable to know and 
to serve. The hypnotist charms as does the snake; the 
magnetic individual exerts a charm that is real. It pro¬ 
duces pleasure because of its value. It supplies vitality 
and exuberance where these are lacking; it sustains 
them, where they are present. 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 273 


*«**« M * M « M * M « , *«********« 4 *! M «**** 4 **** M ** , * , ** H t M ** 



Magnetism gives buoyancy to others and arouses 
vitality. 

This is the Fifty-third Principle. What is meant by 
buoyancy is a lightness of feeling, as though the weights 
that have dragged down life are released, and the heart 
once more soars to realms of hope and radiance. 

Many a time have we heard some weary person say that 
the presence of such an one had driven all sorrow away, 
for a while at least. “ Why do I go to hear Mr. Gough lec¬ 
ture every time he comes? Because he lifts the heavy 
load of care from my heart; he fills me with life, and I 
am stronger for weeks after he has lectured.” It is well- 
known that John B. Gough’s magnetism was of the very 
highest order, and drew larger audiences at every re¬ 
newed engagement. In one city he failed to attract a 
large number at the start, although his reputation had 
well preceded him, the difficulty being due to the fact 
that he was regarded as a temperance lecturer, when in 
reality he had a large repertory of other subjects; and 
the city was passing through the era of decay due to 
the general use of alcoholic beverages. The people 
spoke of him as one demented. The press published the 
statement that he had arrived in the place drunk. 

His personality was an example of the power of mag¬ 
netism. The lecture was slimly attended, but by his 
proofs he showed the perjury of the press, and held the 
editors and reporters up to such scorn that they never 
again received the confidence of the public. Those who 
were fortunate enough to listen to the lecture came away 
a stature higher. One lady said: “I never felt so grand 
as when I came out of that hall,” and her sentiment was 
echoed by others. The magnetism of the man had over- 


274 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


come the first meeting of his enemies in that place; but 
he was destined to follow np the advantage. Later on 
he delivered another lecture in that city, in which he re¬ 
peated his proofs of perjury against the press, and his 
reception showed that the people despised the papers, 
as after-events also corroborated, for the paying adver¬ 
tisements were withdrawn, and the papers suspended. 

In another place he met something of the same experi¬ 
ence, for the reporters and editors all came forward 
with the allegation that Mr. Gough had not been sober 
for a year, and that his nerves were unstrung from habit¬ 
ual drunkenness. It is well-known that a person who is 
in such condition could have none of that steadiness of 
nerves that is necessary in the self-control of magnetism. 
The public knew this. His enemies and his friends knew 
it well. So, to prove the absurdity of the charge, he took 
a goblet of water, adding more, until it was full to the 
top and almost ready to overflow; then, during the most 
impassioned part of his lecture, he held the goblet out 
at arm’s length for fifteen minutes without so much as 
jarring off a single drop. The wonderful steadiness of 
nerves and the tremendous strength of his magnetism 
were marvels that enraptured his audience. Year after 
year he came to them, and lived to see his enemies, the 
editors and reporters, buried in the grave of oblivion 
that sooner or later closed over them. 

There is a pleasurable satisfaction in the new vitality 
which we feel when we come under the influence of a 
great soul. Something is added to the force of our own 
faculties. There is strength in the contact. A man who 
suffered from a headache that his doctor could not cure, 
went to hear a speaker who possessed a large amount of 
magnetism, and came away without the headache. A 
young lady, who was subject to painful headaches, found 
that they would fly away whenever her aunt came into 
the room, as she believed the lady took them from her. 


ESTATE OF (PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 275 


The evidence is very full and very thoroughly corrob¬ 
orated that all magnetic individuals exercise this happy 
influence over those who are weaker; sometimes all that 
is necessary is to enter a room, or to speak a word, or 
to give a glance of the eye, and the depression gives way 
to buoyancy and a feeling of stronger vitality. 

♦t**j**t**t**t**»**.**. 4 *. 44 .**. 4 *.**.**.**.**. 4 *.**i**.* 4 v*' 

I: 5* I 

<♦ 

*x**********k********************************************** 

A magnetic person may supply magnetism to another. 

This is the Fifty-fourth Principle. In its application 
to the practice of hypnotism it has an important bearing, 
in that it furnishes the power to release a subject from 
sleep, and restore him to his normal consciousness. We 
have seen that the magnetism of the subject must be ex¬ 
hausted by the operator before such sleep can be induced, 
and it remains for the latter to again supply what has 
been withdrawn. 

If this is not done the subject either falls into a condi¬ 
tion of true catalepsy, or else wakes out of the condition 
as soon as his sleep brings back vitality enough to es¬ 
tablish magnetism or nervous life, although only on the 
negative side. The question has been asked, if one who 
is powerfully magnetic is able to yield up his own mag¬ 
netism enough to establish a positive fund in another 
individual. The idea that a person possessing this power 
obtains control over others by lessening their freedom of 
will is wrong. When magnetism produces an influence 
over another person it increases, for the time being, the 
power of that person’s mind, and adds a volition or desire 
to agree with the views expressed by the person exerting 
such influence. It wins this agreement by fair means. In 
order, however, to do so, it is necessary to give such 
strength of mind to the person as will enable him to 


276 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


grasp and understand the ideas which are set forth. 
When the influence is of an emotional character, the whole 
nervous system of the person to be won is enlivened, 
strengthened and made responsive to the feelings which 
are expressed. 

Persons whose magnetism is negative have been 
brought over to the positive side by the great power of 
some individual, as is often noted at the theatre. 
The stimulus for dramatic talent has been aroused under 
the influence of some very magnetic actor; and persons 
so affected have gone from the amusement hall firmly 
resolved to devote their lives to such art. It is said of 
actors who have become discouraged through their own 
waning abilities, that their power has been revived 
and a new lease of genius secured through such stimulus. 
Magnetism and vitality are associated under certain 
conditions, but each is an element in the make-up of the 
being. Vitality may be referred to as relating to health 
or physical strength although magnetism associates itself 
with the source of both; but the latter term is more famil¬ 
iarly recognized when it occurs in the operations of the 
nervous system, through the mind, in the emotions, or as 
some form of feeling. Through these channels it reaches 
similar conditions in others, and furnishes them with some 
share of its own power. It makes the vitality stronger, 
and sets in motion the currents of bodily health, without 
taking any of these qualities from the person who thus 
benefits others. 

The best physicians are thus endowed with the ability 
to stimulate into health the depressed vital systems of 
their patients, and to buoy up their depleted magnetic 
state by the vigor and fullness of their own nervous life. 
“I felt better the moment the physician arrived,” said 
a wealthy banker, who was suffering from nervous pros¬ 
tration. “ Although I was very ill at the time, and lay 
in bed with my face from him, having no knowledge who 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 277 


was coming, I felt as if a strong influence was approach¬ 
ing me; and, somehow, I found that I had more strength 
and more of that quality which I had often known as 
personal magnetism. I turned over, and saw the doctor’s 
great eyes shining upon me, and his features seemed to 
say that he proposed to bring me back again into health, 
even if he lost some of his own magnetism by so doing. 
His voice was decisive and told the same story. When 
he placed his hand upon my forehead, it seemed as though 
an empty shell was being filled from some large storage 
battery . 9 9 The same kind of experience has been common 
with those who are ill and are fortunate enough to have 
the services of physicians who possess a large fund of 
magnetism. 


♦*«.**.*.»*..j^»**«*.»*»»*.»j.»*..**********»***»*»***»*****- 

f 55 


Magnetism awakens and strengthens whatever faculty 
it affects. 

This is the Fifty-fifth Principle. Not only does 
this power give its virtue to individuals toward whom 
it is directed, but also reacts upon the person exercising 
it. Let a man who is undergoing a system of training 
or culture for the purpose of enhancing his own value 
give his mind full scope of action, and he will soon dis¬ 
cover that the brain and its operations have been bene¬ 
fited. If a student of magnetism, after making some 
headway in the acquisition of the power, devotes himself 
to cultivating the will so that it may be made an instru¬ 
ment of resistless energy, he will be pleasantly surprised 
to learn that this faculty has grown with great rapidity. 

Man has so many faculties, and they are so varied in 
their uses, that it is only necessary to refer to them in 
a general way. We have known many students of den- 


278 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


tistry, and many practitioners in that profession, who 
have taken np the art of magnetic culture as a means of 
assisting them in their work. Whether the old style of 
dental work is pursued or modern methods prevail, it is 
of the utmost importance that the nerves he strong and 
always under the most exact control; and it is their 
steadiness, coupled with good judgment, that determines 
the real skill of the dentist. The instruments he uses 
are small yet powerful in their effects; his hand should 
not allow them to slip nor should rough usage and un¬ 
evenness of applied force cause pain to the patient. 
There is no difficulty in recognizing the hand of skill, 
or the more clumsy hand of unsteadiness; and many 
a person has refused to go a second time to a dentist 
who, no matter what his knowledge may he, lacks control 
of his nerve or has not that fineness of touch which lessens 
the suffering and gives a relative pleasure, if such is pos¬ 
sible. From reports sent by dentists who have learned 
how efficacious the art of magnetism becomes in their pro¬ 
fession, we are satisfied that no greater blessing could be 
secured, both for the practitioner and his patients. One 
very frankly stated that the study of magnetism has 
added thousands of dollars to his yearly income by rea¬ 
son of the greater skill acquired. 

The lives of most doctors are so irregular that they are 
constantly subject to low states of vitality, from which 
their patients suffer fully as much as themselves. No 
man more than a physician needs the aid of magnetism; 
and it is our pleasure to know, from knowledge secured 
directly from them, that many physicians, reaping the 
advantages of this culture, have acquired magnetism 
where none was known before; and others have 
increased the stock already on hand. Lawyers have 
been slow to take advantage of anything that adds to 
their personal qualifications for rendering useful services 
to their clients, their chief aim being to extract as much 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 279 


money as possible, and to flatter themselves by occasional 
successes in litigation, no matter what the means em¬ 
ployed. There are, however two or three lawyers in every 
hundred who believe that the greater their own personal 
attainments may become, the more useful they will be to 
those whose money makes it possible for them to live; and 
these few, numbering thousands in the aggregate, are 
finding out the truth of the matter. Wherever any attor¬ 
ney has entered earnestly into the study of magnetism 
he has added vastly to his ability, to his reputation and 
to his income. 

Magnetism aids the lawyer by making his brain 
stronger and clearer; by enabling him to grasp the more 
difficult situations in a case; by leading him into the 
depths of the law without submerging him; by showing 
to him the salient facts in a cloud of disconnected testi¬ 
mony; by enabling him to explain everything clearly to 
his clients; by preventing him from the disadvantages of 
confusion and distraction during the heated conflict of 
trial; by giving him a better standing in court, both be¬ 
fore the judge, the jury, his associates and opponents; 
by enhancing his power in argument, and, above all else, 
by quickening his keenness of insight in the examination 
of witnesses. The reason why most lawyers refrain from 
any means of self-improvement is a fixed belief in their 
own extraordinary powers, which is not borne out by the 
experience of after-years; still they keep on waiting and 
looking for that sudden blossoming which never comes, 
whose embryonic petals are mildewed in the infancy 
of their budding. Hence the unmagnetic lawyer is a 
failure. 

A very valuable illustration of the change that this 
culture will produce in one life, comes from the statement 
of a lawyer, who undertook to improve himself at the 
age of twenty-five, after nearly four years of practice. 
He had commenced work in court before the close of his 


280 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


twenty-first year, being the youngest jury advocate in 
Ms country, and found Mmself favored by an extraordi¬ 
nary combination of circumstances, of which he was able 
to take full advantage. He lost case after case, and soon 
found that prospects, which had at first appeared splen¬ 
did to him and his friends, were rapidly fading away. 
This condition of things discouraged and disheartened 
him; he saw that something was wrong, but what he could 
not tell. He was gifted in speech, was a good rhetorician, 
was keen in logic, and had depth of reasoning powers 
for one of his age; yet older and mightier lawyers awed 
him; the adverse ruling of judges made his mind a vacu¬ 
ity for the time being, and shrewd witnesses overmatched 
him. Cross-examination was something he could not 
understand. 

At the age of twenty-five, when he was really about 
twenty-six, his prospects had practically vanished; his 
conceit had proved a bubble of thin vapor, and he cast 
about him to discover the cause of it all. After months 
of enforced idleness his mind perceived, in the efforts of 
the great advocates to whom he listened with wrapt 
attention, that they possessed a quality which he utterly 
lacked. This was commonly known by the name of per¬ 
sonal magnetism. People said it was born in men, and 
could not be acquired; and this he believed for a while. 
He took the trouble at least to analyze this quality, and 
he found that it was always attended by certain personal 
charms, which seemed to be the source of the power itself. 
Further examination showed that such charms were 
merely attendants upon it, necessary to it, but not origi¬ 
nators of it. He was compelled to look further. He 
noticed that magnetic men were cool and always free 
from embarrassment; that they spoke deeply and from 
their souls rather than from the mind; that they derived 
their power from within, so far within that they seemed 
to speak with another self, and that they had warmth 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 281 


in’their tones, a gleam of brightness in the eve and a 
tense condition of all their physical faculties , 

All these things gave evidence of an electrical or phos¬ 
phorescent fire burning within. When a magnetic 
speaker began to exert an influence strong enough to 
affect others, a person sitting at a certain angle could 
always discern this electrical brightness of the eye. The 
lawyer to whom we have referred spent some time in 
the study of these forces, specially as applied to the 
human being, and he satisfied himself that they could be 
acquired. Books then told him so. He found that they 
came both by negative and by positive means; that in a 
negative way, by preventing waste and loss of vitality, 
the natural accumulation of nervous energy in a single 
day became enormous, and that this might be added to 
by exercises, training and regime. He was somewhat 
idle in his profession, and took plenty of time to discover 
the full truth of these new suggestions and to put them 
into practice. 

Soon after he had become interested in these ideas, he 
had a court trial at hand, and herein he resolved to make 
some effort toward winning through the aid of the power 
of personal magnetism. He really trained himself spe¬ 
cially for the handling of this case. By some very good 
luck the trial was delayed three weeks beyond the time 
first set, and he had a total of nearly three months in 
which he had devoted himself to this culture. He laid 
everything else aside, for he was thoroughly in earnest. 
He had not then studied the nature of the will as a mag¬ 
netic force, but somehow made the mastery of himself 
in this particular trial the goal of a most determined 
resolution. Never before did he open a case so calmly 
and yet so firmly. Never did the members of the county 
bar see him so cool, and they said that he had the self- 
possession of one confident of victory. The first real and 
effective cross-examination that he had ever done he did 


282 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


at this time. He actually discovered errors in the state¬ 
ments of witnesses, and destroyed the value of the testi¬ 
mony offered against his client. In the various argu¬ 
ments that attend the offering of objections during the 
course,of a trial he was clear, concise and effective, and 
almost uniformly successful in the positions which he 
maintained. His argument was the best he had ever 
delivered, and the first entitled to positive praise. 

Four years later this lawyer had become a master adept 
in the use of magnetism. The only thing we care to 
specially note in this connection is his statement of the 
remarkable clearness of mind which attended him in the 
cross-examination of adverse witnesses. This clearness 
almost reached the realm of the sub-conscious faculty; 
and certainly many questions, which he was prompted to 
ask, and which brought answers that materially helped 
him in the winning of cases, must have sprung from 
the gift of intuition. In illustration of the same point, a 
very successful jury advocate once made this statement: 
‘ ‘ In probing the minds of witnesses opposed to me I often 
found myself impelled to ask questions that came to me 
by a sort of inspiration; and many an apparently lost 
cause has been won by the hazard of chance inquiries. It 
seemed as if the witnesses had these important things 
in mind, and thought of them so hard that my own mind 
must have caught them; and one case, I am sure, was 
lost until I saved it by a chance question. ’ ’ This experi¬ 
ence has been confirmed by other attorneys similarly 
gifted. 


f: 66 I 

% s 


Magnetism is enhanced by every physical and men¬ 
tal charm. 

This is the Fifty-sixth Principle. Not only does mag- 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 283 

netism benefit and improve in every way tbe faculties 
of those who employ it, but it also is improved by the 
charms of personality in the individual. It would not 
be reasonable to expect any power to win by the sheer 
force of its own energy, any more than we would expect 
an engine, without evenness of action and freedom from 
friction, to do effective work, even though the most 
powerful energy was driving it. Magnetism is the power 
in the individual; the charms of his personality are the 
channels, in part at least, through which that power acts. 

Any method that will attract the favorable attention 
of others is of some service; and any thing that will 
repel makes the exercise of power so much the harder. 
No person has ever been successful in the use of mag¬ 
netism who has not aided it in every possible way. Flat¬ 
tery from a shallow soul, uttered in display and without 
semblance of genuineness, is always repelled; even those 
who are pleased to be praised by the empty heads of sy¬ 
cophants become angry at the dead tones of such flat¬ 
terers; but let it be charged with the warmth of magnet¬ 
ism, and it takes on a new life at once. In such a way 
have the aggressive natures of the world’s famous 
personages won their way to the hearts of those who 
would otherwise have remained enemies. We do not 
mean to say that mere flattery is a charm; the fact really 
is that the fascination attending it lies in the politeness, 
the sympathy and the kindness of heart that magnetic 
men and women know well how to use with the great¬ 
est effect. 

Nothing is more valuable in the study of human life 
than the close analysis of those methods by which success¬ 
ful persons capture the good opinions of others, whose 
aid is necessary to them. The lawyer, by his extraordi¬ 
nary success, may force the public to patronize him, but 
he cannot force the jury to believe in him simply because 
he has won other cases and has achieved a great reputa- 


284 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


tion. To fall back upon sucb a belief, and to repel the 
jurors by unpleasant methods of procedure, would be 
foolhardy in the extreme. The clergyman might claim 
that he is charged with the power that is implied from 
the nature of his profession, and the great majority seem 
to rely upon nothing else; but if charms of manner, ele¬ 
gance of mind and effective beauties of voice were sub¬ 
stituted for the loud and rasping notes of a discordant 
voice, the results attained would overwhelm the world. 
Many physicians pretend to believe that a knowledge of 
drugs is all that is necessary to bring their patients 
back to health, and so much vantage ground is lost in 
this profession. The same principle holds true in every 
department of life. 

The personal habits of some individuals tend to repel 
those who would like to be their friends. Awkwardness 
may be endured in the seclusion of acquaintanceship, 
when unobserved by others; but no young lady takes 
pleasure in displaying to her choicest friends a lover who 
is constantly having a misunderstanding with his feet; 
who knocks things over by the angularity of his elbows, 
and who sits astride an imaginary war-horse when in 
their presence. In a well-balanced nature love is never 
blind to faults that invoke general ridicule; and many 
a genuine love match has come to an abrupt end because 
of the crudeness of the lover, and he has been left to infer 
that the cause was due solely to the fickleness of his 
sweetheart. She was too generous to wound him where 
he was most vulnerable. 

The roughness of mind and heart, as well as those of 
the body, have stood in the way of success in thousands 
of instances, where ability would otherwise have carried 
men to the highest pinnacle of fame. It needs hardly 
be noted that many prominent men in recent American 
history have been obscured because of their lack of 
charms, both in mind and heart, although they have 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 285 


been gifted with genius in its grandest form. When 
a little success makes a man arrogant, overhearing and 
independent of the opinions of others, his ability is never 
great enough, nor his past triumphs brilliant enough, to 
prevent the decadence of his power. His career begins 
its downward course. If he succeeds at all after that, 
it is by compelling others to yield to him, and this enjoy¬ 
ment of power is bound to be short-lived. 

v t 

x 57 ;? 

I I 

*** *^**************************** *************** ***^***** *1* 

Temperament is the result of magnetism, not the cause 
of it. 

This is the Fifty-seventh Principle. The first step 
toward the attainment of those personal charms, which 
aid magnetism in winning, is to establish a fixed tempera¬ 
ment; and this is done by the adoption of new habits. 
It is supposed by some, if not by most persons, that mag¬ 
netism is the outgrowth of a natural temperament, the 
influences of which give it birth. There is no reason for 
this assumption. The analysis of the lives of men and 
women proves very conclusively that the magnetic tem¬ 
perament is developed by methods of living, regime or 
courses of conduct that tend to conserve the nervous 
energies; and those who are described as possessing this 
power by the gift of nature are entitled to the credit them¬ 
selves, even though it has been unconsciously secured. 

Experiments show that any person who is in earnest 
by emulating the examples of others, if he is able to 
ascertain what they include, can develop the same tem¬ 
perament in himself. If he waits for it to become estab¬ 
lished before he undertakes this line of study, he will wait 
in vain. The temperament is undoubtedly necessary, for 
it is a continual source of supply and stands him in 


286 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


good stead under all circumstances. He needs it in those 
hours of conflict or discouragement, when the very 
foundations of his nature seem to fly from under him; 
when enemies are strongest and friends weakest; when 
it is hard to assume an attitude of courage that his own 
position does not justify, and when a compromise with 
the soft terms of policy, at the expense of honor, will 
relax the tension of the strain under which he is held. 
No man can have a better friend, a more staunch and 
abiding supporter than such a temperament. No woman 
is better qualified to take care of herself in the world, 
to repel aggression without giving offence, or to show 
her superiority to the average man, than when she 
is aided by this temperament. Yet both sexes may 
acquire it at will. Like many other forms of riches 
which surround mankind on every side, it requires but 
intelligent effort to possess it abundantly. 

Common lives that seem to lack all character in their 
temperament, have been revolutionized after the use of 
magnetism has commenced. It is not merely in the study, 
but essentially in the adoption and practice of this power 
that advantage arises. It may be adopted by a resolu¬ 
tion of the will, founded upon a knowledge of the ways in 
which the native force is kept from wasting, and also 
upon the regime that drifts into lives without practice 
of any sort. Man is the daily creation of his own mind, 
and life is the accumulation of days. Young men are 
most ambitious in the years when they seek hardest 
to earn their own living; say from twenty-one to twenty- 
seven in many cases; and they most easily acquire new 
temperaments. Older men change at will, but are not 
as flexible. We have known women at every age lay 
down the coil of a badly-planned life, and take on the 
vesture of temperaments calculated to improve their 
conditions. In some the change is most rapid. We must 
see what steps are necessary to be taken. 


ESTATE OF -PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 287 




58 





Magnetism broadens the features. 

This is the Fifty-eighth Principle. To one who reads 
carefully and repeatedly the requirements and regime 
that make and attend the change from a negative to 
a magnetic temperament, the first real surprise is the 
destroying of the ‘‘worry wrinkles’’ that are found on 
the brow in most persons. There are three kinds of 
these; the first and most common being the two indenta¬ 
tions at the top of the nose, between the eyes, at the base 
of the forehead. In some persons there is but a single 
indentation; in others there are two, of about equal height, 
for they are always vertical; in others they are unequal, 
one being long and deep, the other quite short and thin, 
while the weakest of all nervous temperaments have 
three. 

The strongest men and women, in a nervous sense, 
make one deep wrinkle and another shallow one, generally 
on each side of the nose, while a spray of very faint 
indentations will appear over each eye in rare instances. 
The life, or dramatic meaning of a vertical wrinkle is 
dislike; and this comes from the fact that occurrences 
of the day cause feelings that embody the mood of dis¬ 
like. We never worry at what we like. Hatred, malice, 
revenge, and all the darker characteristics of the mind 
tend to produce these vertical indentations. In any event, 
they show a negative state of magnetism and a tempera¬ 
ment not of the best. They do more than this; they mar 
the face, destroy its beauty and repel the admiration of 
those who would otherwise find pleasure in looking upon 
it. 

Study the faces of those whom you meet, or of those 
with whom you are thrown in daily contact, and note 


288 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


the accuracy of this law. When the brow is knitted, 
something is wrong; some idea has passed through the 
mind that has caused dislike; or some fear, worry, fret¬ 
ful influence or other similar mood has detracted from 
the peace of the brain or nervous system. A mother 
shows this more than a father; for her cares are many, 
and she never is free from them; but a man in business, 
who cannot keep matters straightened out or always 
under control, will come home with the deep indenta¬ 
tions at the brows. Speak an unkind word to one of your 
friends, and no matter how boldly it may be defied at the 
time, if it has sunk in you will note the deepening 
wrinkle hour by hour during the day. The sullen brow 
depresses the face and narrows it perceptibly. 

If you wish to see how quickly the smoothness or 
beauty of the face may be destroyed, knit the brows and 
go about that way all day long. Your acquaintances will 
ask, ‘ ‘ What is the matter 1 99 Strange glances will be cast 
at you, and the remark may be made: “Something has 
gone wrong . 9 ’ This will not be so, if it is your custom to 
carry knitted brows, for they will not exhibit surprise. 
Many a beautiful woman has lost all her good looks by 
this deplorable custom. Young ladies, who have 
depended upon their faces for the retinue of admirers 
that have made life enjoyable, find at length that they 
are not so attractive as formerly, and wonder what has 
come over them. They see all the defects of skin and 
color, but not those of the muscles. Said a young man: 
“Here is the photograph of the girl I once loved. Look 
at its smoothness of face; and now, three years later, 
see how ugly it has become .’ 9 It was ugly indeed; but 
the cause was in the muscles, as the general shape of 
the face showed the possibility of great beauty. 

On inquiring the cause of his discarding her, which he 
had said he did, we found that it was due to an irritable 
temper. She had scolded him often for trifles, was fretful, 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 289 

and seemed to dislike most persons, for she rarely had 
a good word for any one. “Yet, when I met her, she 
was a very sweet girl and had a very beantifnl face.” 
The cause of her change of temperament was really the 
habit of fretting at little things. It grew on her, until 
it became a settled habit. This is true of very many 
persons. They fuss and fret, and give way to every 
little hit of irritation, until they no longer have any con¬ 
trol of themselves. Then the face gets narrow, and the 
wrinkles come in. 

We mention the case of the girl who had been dis¬ 
carded, because it arose in the midst of a circle of acquain¬ 
tanceship well known to us. The young lady was aware 
of the ugliness of face that had come in so short a part 
of her life; she knew in time that it had driven her lover 
from her and was constantly ostracizing her from the 
friends whom she would secure, and she had just sense 
enough to inquire the cause. For three years she be¬ 
lieved it was due to the meanness of the world in general, 
to the falsity of all mankind, to the fickleness and empty- 
hearted pretences of those who would fawn upon her 
if she would permit them. Then she became satisfied that 
it was due to herself. 

This was a very wise conclusion, and few indeed are 
shrewd enough to catch the spirit of a fact so accurately. 
She took a mirror, and exclaimed, “What a face!” It 
was her good fortune to become a pupil in expression, 
where the phases of life are studied under the principles 
and fixed laws of nature. To her teacher she said frankly: 
“I am studying my own face under your theories of facial 
drift, and I wish to see if I can control it. In the first 
place, is it symmetrical?” It certainly was, in bone 
formation. There was no deformity of brow, cheek-bone, 
nose or chin. No better shaped face could be found. The 
trouble was with the muscles only. The hideous ugli¬ 
ness was due to a contraction of those strings that move 


290 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


the flesh to suit the mind and disposition. Every ill- 
natured thought ploughs its small groove through the 
face; hut this is really done by a contraction at the 
temple muscles, as a basis for facial drifts, followed by 
the narrowing of the brow. 

The face is a bunch of strings, called flesh muscles. 
Each part is in two arrangements; one to pull the flesh 
one way, the other to pull it back again. These masses 
of flesh are capable of being moved up or down, right or 
left, and in any combination of these directions, as up 
to the right, up to the left, and so on. In fact, there is 
no direction in which some part of the face cannot be 
moved. The skin is a live leather, overlying the flesh 
beneath; it is controlled by an intricate interlacing of 
little muscles, and every thought sheds its influence one 
way or the other on this construction. The expressions 
of which the face is capable are more than two thousand 
millions in number, and they are all made by the multi¬ 
tudes of directions which each fine fibre may make. 

It stands to reason that, if a skin is smooth when 
stretched, it would be wrinkled when collapsed, relaxed 
or contracted. Magnetism is a life of tensity which de¬ 
stroys all relaxation as indicative of weakness; it pulls the 
face out of its narrow shape into one of breadth. The 
mere sensation of pleasure does this, while gloom con¬ 
tracts the features. An examination of the process of 
change seems to prove that the broadening of the face 
begins at the back of the ears, and pulls the temples 
smooth; but the flesh at the temples plays its part at 
the same time. The forehead is also active, so that it 
cannot be said that the scalp at the back half or third of 
the head is the only motive-power at work. 

In noting these important movements, no result is 
more satisfactory than that which comes from the bring¬ 
ing of a genuine pleasure to one who has been depressed. 
A gentleman was quite worried over the uncertainty of 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 291 


news in a certain business transaction. His usually 
serene countenance, which indicated self-control and 
magnetism, was now severely contracted, and deep inden¬ 
tations were noticeable between the eyes at the base of 
the brow. Two friends secured information of the 
brighter turn of affairs in the business matter, and came 
to him resolved to see what effect the news would have on 
his knitted face. It was agreed that these two men would 
sit, one on each side, and note the effect of the gradual 
introduction of the report which they were about to 
make. The conversation had been adroitly planned. 

He greeted them as usual and then relaxed into some 
business matters that required attention. The two men 
began a cross-fire of remarks widely separated in point 
of time, but calculated to lead indirectly to the subject 
that was uppermost in their minds. The first referred to 
a third party who had become interested in a business 
deal of a similar nature, and he said of him, casually: 
“Mr. A. is likely to pull out after all.” There was a 
long pause, when the second man said: “Yes, I saw him 
this morning. He was feeling very cheerful.” Another 
wait of several minutes ensued. The man in the center 
of this group of three was listening, then went to his 
work again, as though he had not heard at all; but the 
effect was noticeable; there was a tightening of the mus¬ 
cles at the temples, and the scalp behind was somewhat 
tense. The first man continued: “I heard that A. was 
through with the matter.’ ’ Another pause. The second 
man added at length: “Yes, he’s through, and his bank 
account is fatter to-day.” This was too much for the 
worried man. He swung around, and asked: “Have you 
heard anything definite!” “I merely got word that the 
deal was closed.” “Which way!” “A. came out 
ahead.” “This helps me.” “Does it!” “Yes; I will 
phone up.” The knitted brow was not yet smooth; there 
was a lingering doubt. He rang his telephone, and com- 


292 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


municated with agents who had charge of the matter, 
and learned that the load had fallen off his shoulders. 
Success came, and in a very large measure. He sat down 
to go on with his other business, but it was too tame. 
The face had come out smoothly; the deep indentations 
were gone. They left their tiny scars, awaiting the 
deepening effect of some future worry, if it should per¬ 
chance happen to come. 

No face is so repulsive as that which is narrow. The 
lines at the sides of the mouth grow straighter in con¬ 
ditions of negative magnetism, and they become more 
curved and broader in cases of positive magnetism. The 
cheeks are thrown in against the nose, and the nostrils 
are pinched. Look at those little openings at the nose, 
and see how broad, how wide open, how distended they 
become under any phase of self-control; then note the 
pinching of the same features when the disposition is 
meaner. They say the dramatic meaning of closed nos¬ 
trils is cruelty. It may be that the center of the face, 
which is in fact the seat of emotional intelligence, is 
indicative of the heart’s moods, and that cruelty and 
its kindred meanings are found in such contractions, 
while generosity and sympathy are associated with the 
broadening of the face-center. 

Then the forehead muscles play a very important part 
in the determination of moods that are the outgrowth 
of the reasoning faculties. Let a person think much on a 
subject, and his forehead will show lateral or horizontal 
wrinkles running over the nose and partly over the eyes. 
These are strangely produced in two ways. When the 
brows, or the little lines of hair over the eyes, are raised 
high, the forehead takes on horizontal wrinkles, the true 
meaning of which is doubt. Certainty tends to bring 
down these eyebrows, and firmness plants them squarely 
over the eyes. Uncertainty raises them; the greater 
the doubt, the higher up they go; and you have seen some 



ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 293 

men and many women who are nnable to withhold this 
evidence of their worrying. 

In one case a woman of generally calm face was seen to 
raise her eyebrows very frequently. In a week they were 
fixed at a quarter of an inch higher than before. The 
trouble was due to the fact that her husband had taken 
inventory of his goods at the store, and the account of 
stock showed a falling off in the last six months. This 
he told to his wife. The thought of poverty, of failure 
in business, of the anger of creditors, and the disgrace 
among neighbors when the report got out, filled her 
mind all the livelong day, and haunted her in dreams. 
In a month the eyebrows had risen a half inch, and in 
four weeks more she had them up close to the top of 
her forehead. No change could be more complete. It 
was amazing. Her brother called upon her from his far 
western home, and could not refrain from an exclama¬ 
tion of surprise when the uplifted face greeted his. He 
inquired the cause; but she, faithful to the promise made 
to her husband, refused to divulge it. The brother then 
went to the latter, who had not noticed the change in his 
wife; the gradation had been so little day by'day. They 
discussed matters of business in confidence, and better 
success came. But it took as many years to restore that 
forehead to its normal shape as it took months to pro¬ 
duce the former change. This is a common experience; 
a tendency the wrong way is not so easily remedied, for 
it soon fixes itself. 

Trouble is the combined meanings of that uncontrol 
which instigates the expressions of doubt and that dis¬ 
like which is shown in the knitting of the brow. In the 
making of this double meaning the vertical wrinkles per¬ 
vade the lower half of the forehead, due to the contract¬ 
ing and narrowing of the face; while they are crossed by 
the horizontal wrinkles, making a display of broken 
skin. The forehead is truly clouded. Its meaning is 


294 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


trouble. The strange fact is that the horizontal lines are 
due to the forward movement of the scalp more than 
to the upward action of the eyebrows. This pushing 
down of the forehead by the scalp’s action allows the 
brows to remain down also, as in sullenness; the latter 
having some element of firmness in it, as is seen in the 
closed mouth when the corners are down in the settled 
mood of discontent. 

Magnetism tenses the face, as does any bright sensa¬ 
tion, and this tensing opens the features. We have 
referred to a young lady, who allowed her peevish nature 
to so narrow her face that it became quite ugly, although 
it had been beautiful. This ugliness drove her lover 
away. She studied expression, and learned what were the 
causes and the meanings of all muscular changes of the 
face. Under advice she also studied advanced mag¬ 
netism. Not by artificial methods, not by pretences of 
a better disposition, not by massage and the mechanical 
means of smoothing her face, did she attempt to get back 
its beauty, but by a deeply rooted system of magnetism 
that went to the core of her feeing and revolutionized her 
mind, her heart and her nervous nature. She won back 
her loveliness and her lover. The same thing is true, or 
may be made true, in all lives; for magnetism broadens 
the features, as it also broadens the whole personality. 
It is the best of all personal attainments. 

k 59 

& 

Cynicism weakens mind and heart. 

This is the Fifty-ninth Principle. If we were dealing 
with nothing but physical magnetism, we might let this 
subject go without discussion. The best phase of this 
power is in its mental and emotional character. The 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 295 


beef is good enough, but there are departments of human 
life far above flesh, even though dependent upon that 
as a basis of existence. Our principle refers to the dark 
malice of the mind; the very thing that turned the sweet¬ 
faced maiden to a hideous hater of her fellow mortals, 
and stamped its nature on her face. 

Cynicism is a distrust of the motives of others; a look¬ 
ing for something sinister in every good deed; a berater 
of charity because of its possibility of intended display, 
and a snapper at everything and everybody from early 
morning to the last hours of the dreary day. Its first 
effect is seen in the features. The brow knits more 
and more deeply; the forehead has its wrinkles of 
doubt, as though all persons were objects of dire suspi¬ 
cion; the nose becomes pinched in cruelty, and the cor¬ 
ners of the mouth drag down. Take a mirror, and try to 
change your face to such a condition; see if you deem the 
same beautiful, and try to catch the meanings that 
lurk in the disarrangement of those lines that may mark 
the sublime trend of grandest thoughts, or scrawl the 
hatred of the devil. Do not allow cynicism ever to possess 
you. 

It is not because of its moral, so much as on account of 
its magnetic value that one should be free from the 
cynic’s disposition. The cure is in the formation of a new 
habit, by the resolution of a determined will, which shall 
forbid the doubting, distrusting moods to come into the 
mind. Bad things grow first and fastest. When you look 
for flowers, the weeds are there. Uncanny habits take 
a strong hold on most natures, and resist to the last. The 
will alone can conquer them. Now, here is an oppor¬ 
tunity for you to try your own value. What are you 
worth in will-power? We know you are cynical; just a 
little, perhaps; but it is the little out of which everything 
great grows. Eradicate it. It is better to hunt for good 
motives in every human life, and be deceived, than 


296 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


to hunt for the had ones and find them; better because 
of its reflex action on your mind, your heart and soul. 
If all men and women would cease searching for the ill 
in others, and set about finding the good, there would 
be much more of the latter in the world, for we can 
always find what we look for. Try it. Set the example. 
Get a hundred others to try it also. It will become infec¬ 
tious. 



Adverse criticism is unmagnetic. 

This is the Sixtieth Principle. It is true that all per¬ 
sons are free to pass judgment on the acts and thoughts 
of their fellow beings when any earthly good can be ac¬ 
complished by so doing; but the criticism should be 
bright, sunny and generous, without being untrue and 
misleading. If you cannot say bright things of a person, 
keep silent. Few indeed are the individuals who are 
totally deprived of some affirmative quality; if you find 
such, you may pass them by. There are some people 
whom it is best to disregard. 

Criticism is of two classes; the first applies to matters 
of which the public seek to be informed, the second to 
those in which individuals are interested. It is useless 
to speak of the methods employed by newspapers, as such 
methods are generally beyond the pale of civilization. As 
long as they attack evil, show fight to the devil, and cry 
down the bad in every form, they are the agents of 
good; but they do not do this. We believe that it is 
the duty of every man and woman who honors the truth 
to make war upon dishonesty. Criticism attacks the indi¬ 
vidual. War attacks a principle. Persons engaged in 
doing injury to their fellow beings should be suppressed, 
and their punishment should be intended to deter them 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 297 


and others from doing such injury. All these things come 
under the head of crimes. 

So frail is the human heart that perfection is far from 
possible. The critics are always steeped in the poison 
they discover in others. From the tone of their language 
they seek to create the impression that they themselves 
are free from faults. They do not deal in crimes or penal¬ 
ties, but in weaknesses of life; picking out faults here 
and there, and holding them up to ridicule. They do not 
attack principles or methods, but persons. They avoid 
dealing in laws of operations, and confine themselves to 
characters which they choose to sully, because mud looks 
stronger on white. They prick human beings always in 
sore and tender spots, as though it were a sudden dis¬ 
covery of theirs that there were vulnerable defects in 
mankind. 

What is gained by the general criticism of art, of pro¬ 
fessional work or public careers ? If a production of the 
artist is worthless, absolutely and entirely without merit, 
why not let it alone? The absence of notice will certainly 
not be construed into a favorable report. If it pleases 
the ignorant, let it stand for their sake; for the wise 
will not be deceived by it. If a picture or statue is so 
poor in taste and skill of execution that it repels the un¬ 
initiated, it is not worthy of notice; but if it gives plea¬ 
sure to one mortal, let it go to him in peace. Critics have 
pronounced as daubs some of the masterpieces of crea¬ 
tion; so the opinion is sometimes no better than the 
thoughts expressed. In professional work, singers, 
speakers and actors have been made the butt of ridicule 
by the cheapest of scribblers, the most ignorant of whom 
are found in the large cities. In New York it is so easy to 
bring favorable notices from certain critics that men, 
whose income from their papers is merely nominal, have 
become wealthy in bribery. In that city, and as well in 
any of the large centers of population, you never see a 


298 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


stinging, sarcastic or mean attack on a play, an actor, a 
singer, a musician or a speaker, unless the critic is bid¬ 
ding for money, and is making the notice as bitter as 
possible in order to secure a bribe against its repetition 
in that or other cases. 

If professional work has merit, let that part of it be 
stated. If it is utterly lacking in merit, it is a wonder; 
but let it alone. Every time you turn on the mud faucet 
in your own brain, you daub yourself. You cannot be¬ 
smirch another without getting spattered. If the work 
has but little merit, state that much, and there let the 
matter rest. No one will be deceived. It is much better 
to be silent, or to state a little and have it bright, than to 
turn the mind into a green scum simply to let loose some 
words of ill. Nor is it the harm that may be done to 
others that is to be considered; the moral side of the prob¬ 
lem is not what we are presenting; it is the reaction on 
your own mind. To possess the charm of brightness, 
you need all the sunshine there is in life. You can get 
none so well as by shedding it, as though you were an 
original sun, throwing your rays to planets and their 
satelites. 

That class of criticism which interests the curious 
minds of the masses is in the line of personal malignity. 
There is so much devil in men and women that they 
enjoy the downfall of virtue. Even when the pale-faced 
and pious souls exclaim, 4 ‘Too bad!” they mean it not. 
Here is a man who has held up well for fifty years; the 
public has learned to place their confidence in him; the 
newsmongers get hold of some bit of gossip started by 
some “human gabber,” and the story is distended and 
distorted till it is suitable for a column or more of print; 
the criminal papers start it with big headlines; the vilest 
of these take a whole page, with circus poster type 
running clear across, and it is given to the public. Now 
the men and women who say, “Too bad!” and who pre- 


ESTATE OF, PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 299 


tend to such sorrow because of the downfall of this man— 
well, what do those pale-faced, pious persons do? Do 
they feel the pangs of sorrow because of one more good 
man gone wrong? Not at all. They read every word 
of the account. They get other papers that contain the 
contortions, horribly stretched out; they call the atten¬ 
tion of their friends and acquaintances to the affair; they 
scatter the news as widely as their morbid natures can, 
and they are totally lacking in the sense to see that the 
discrepancies of the sensation stamp it as an untruth 
on its face. What next do they do? We shall see how 
sincere is that expression of pity. The next day the less 
criminal of these scare-head papers come out with the 
statement, in a few lines on a back page of their issue, 
in an obscure corner, to the effect that the scandal was 
wholly without foundation; that it was made up out of 
whole cloth by some gossip, and that the man was inno¬ 
cent. What do the pious men and women do? They 
glance at the refutal with disgust. They never correct 
the lie to their friends and acquaintances. Such is hu¬ 
man nature. 

We present this scum of the heart because you must 
meet it everywhere, and you must not cater to it. You 
cannot afford to send such clouds across the sky of your 
own life. Disappoint the morbid greed for this scum 
by refusing to become a sewer through which any mud 
shall flow. Persons whom you meet may declare that 
they never indulge in gossip and scandal; that they do not 
care to hear it, and all that; but the fact is, they will 
prick up their ears to catch something ill, and will turn 
deaf at mention of something favorable. “I heard a 
certain thing of H.,” said a man to an assemblage of 
acquaintances. “What is it?” chimed in every voice, 
in eager inquiry. “He gave a hundred dollars to some 
worthy poor,” was the answer; and the assemblage said 
“Oh!” in tones of disgust. On another occasion, a man 


300 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


said to the same group: “I heard a certain thing of D.,” 
and they asked quickly, “What is it?” “Well, I heard 
that B. got into trouble last week.” “What did he do?” 
“Out with it,” “Tell us all about it.” “Well, he bor¬ 
rowed fifty dollars of a friend—” “And never paid it 
back?” “Not exactly. He lost it.” “Pretended to?” 
“He said he lost it.” “Yes, yes; of course, he said so. 
He would say that.” And so the conversation went on. 
Let any ill report start out concerning any man or woman, 
and the curiosity of the mind demands to know it, and to 
retail it. Let a suggestion of good, no matter how slight 
or how strong, be made concerning a person, and it dries 
up all curiosity. It is altogether uninteresting. 

A very conclusive experiment was made with a woman 
who had professed to despise gossip. A gentleman friend 
took for the subject of his test an almost unknown per¬ 
sonage, so that the question of interest in the individual 
might not enter into the problem. He then remarked to 
the lady: “I have been pleased to hear good reports of 
Mrs. J.” “Are you interested in bicycling?” “Some¬ 
what. You know Mr. J. does not ride a bicycle.” “I 
never heard so.” “They speak very well of him, and I 
heard of a very excellent deed of his not long ago.” 
“That is very good. Bicycling is coming into vogue 
very rapidly.” “I believe it is already quite popular. I 
got hold of a piece of gossip about this same Mr. J. that 
does not put him in a good light.” The woman swung 
around, directed her gaze from the open window toward 
the man, and asked: “What did he do?” “It was some¬ 
thing that does not reflect credit on a man who pretends 
to be honorable.” “Will it bear repeating?” “I think 
so.” “Then tell me.” “I interrupted you in your remark 
about bicycling. Are you learning to ride?” “Not yet. 
I may, however. But what was that about Mr. J. ? You 
are very tantalizing. Tell me; you keep me in suspense. ’ ’ 
“Oh, yes; I forgot. Do you wish to know what it was 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 301 


lie did that I mentioned as being very good?” “No, 
no. I don’t care for that. You said something else.” 
And this woman then saw the weakness of her nature; 
but she excused herself on the ground that her own heart 
was but a reflection of humanity in general. So it is. 

There is a reason for it, but no excuse. The reason is 
a plain one. All human beings are defective. Not one 
is perfect. The best man and the best woman is morally 
vulnerable somewhere. When that weak spot is found, 
the human devils dance about it like a crowd of revelers, 
glad of its existence. You must not join in that crowd. 
You need and must get a better temperament, one that 
cannot endure the upholding of dark suspicions in this 
world of light. Be brave. Never see evil in another. 
See only the good. Never hint at the bad. Solicit the 
favors of sunshine, cheerfulness and loving kindness, 
and shower them broadcast wherever you go. It will 
pay you well. It is the magnetic temperament. 


♦*..*.v**.*».*.**»**.******«*.**..*.»*..J*.£**J^*«£».*.*^r 

ei % 


An unpleasant voice is unmagnetic. 

This is the Sixty-first Principle. The voice is a reflec¬ 
tion of the real person. No matter how we attempt to 
vary our tones, we cannot escape this law. Even the 
affected assumption of ease fails to conceal what is be¬ 
hind the voice. It has been common of late years for per¬ 
sons who realize that their words are harshly spoken to 
assume a certain style of utterance, which is known as 
affectation, such as we hear in the fop, or in the languid 
lady; but supposing the pretender to be ill, or discour¬ 
aged, or envious, or malicious, or in whatever mood you 
please, the voice will betray such condition by mixing 
other qualities or colors with the affectation. On the same 


302 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


principle it is impossible for a good-natured man to 
assume a really disagreeable tone, although he purposely 
uses a constricted or throaty voice in the attempt. 

There are fixed qualities in the human voice, and they 
are natural because they are the result of long continued 
use, which has developed into a fixed habit. If a person 
has seen too much of the ugly things of life, has developed 
enmities, sought revenge, or given vent in other ways to 
a disposition of dislike or hatred, he will have a voice 
that tells this story in spite of all he can do to conceal 
it. Ordinarily this is known as a guttural fault; the 
throat seems to be narrowed, as though he were attempt¬ 
ing to growl at everybody and everything. We are sorry 
to say that a large majority are endowed with this 
harsh and unpleasant quality; and it is probably true 
that the same majority of the human race has experienced 
feelings of hatred or the desire of revenge to a greater 
or less extent. Another common fault is that of the 
aspirate voice, by which the tone is mixed with unvi¬ 
brated air; and the meaning of this is a desire for secrecy, 
for it is the natural outcome of the universal gossiping 
habit. It is said that not one person in ten thousand, 
on an average, is free from this evil. An aspirate voice 
is unpleasant and irritating. 

In order to cultivate a pleasant voice it is first essential 
to get at the root of the trouble, and this will be found 
in the temperament. By mechanical exercises the gut¬ 
tural and aspirate qualities may be eliminated, except 
for the purposes of art, where they do some service; but 
the only result attained is the acquisition of musical 
clearness and purity, which may be entirely lacking in 
interest. Still it is a fact that mechanically pure tones 
cannot be long kept from becoming harsh. It is by no 
means a difficult matter to overcome all impurities of 
voice, including the most serious defects as well as harsh¬ 
ness, by magnetic exercises alone. This is the short road 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 303 


to tlie best of voices. Under the usual systems of voice 
culture it has required not less than two years to estab¬ 
lish purity and brilliancy of tone, whereas the develop¬ 
ment of magnetism has accomplished as much in a shorter 
time, besides adding permanency of value that can never 
be attained by mere vocal practice. The voice is dis¬ 
agreeable in the quality of its structure, in the method 
of its use, and in what it seeks to convey. Everybody is 
agreed that harsh or unpleasant tones annoy those who 
are compelled to hear them, as scratching on glass with 
a nail irritates the ear. 



Dead tones are unmagnetic. 

This is the Sixty-second Principle. We have seen 
that the voice may be made mechanically pure by exer¬ 
cises in voice culture which are designed for producing 
that result. At first we wonder why a sound that is free 
from defects, as of harshness and a scraping roughness 
so often found in the speaking tones, should not be 
pleasant when the faults have been removed. So they 
are, by comparison. The note of an organ that had a 
cracked reed proved annoying to the church folks; when 
a new reed was put in the place of the defective one, the 
sound was pleasant by comparison. The note was clear, 
beautiful and perfect. To hear it once was charming; to 
hear it a thousand times was pleasant enough; but to 
hear it always was lacking in the charm that it first gave, 
for it was a dead sound. 

All persons have live or dead voices, in the sense that 
they speak from the muscular system, or from the mind 
or heart. A young man said of a young lady, who had 
one of these mechanically perfect voices, “She has the 


304 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


most beautiful voice I ever heard.” He followed her 
for several years as a friend, admirer and suitor. She 
was of a lovable disposition, as far as she was capable 
of loving, but had no malice or hatred in her heart, for 
she was too inactive; an example really of an undevel¬ 
oped nature. This young man could not endure the emp¬ 
tiness of her tones after he had become better acquainted 
with her; their clearness and purity gave him no pleas¬ 
ure, although they did not produce that distress which 
the opposite qualities do, and were preferable to them. 
She had a dead voice, one that was completely lacking in 
magnetism, in emotional warmth or in mental strength. 

Most voices are far from pleasant. They serve for 
a while as a means of communication in business or 
social use, then the hearer is glad when they cease. 

We often meet this dead voice, and in a variety of 
forms. Sometimes it is coupled with aspiration in its 
worst condition; at other times it is gutteral, harsh and 
scraping; and in these combinations it repels all persons 
who come within its sound. These are those whom we 
dislike very much to listen to; they talk and say nothing; 
or, when their ideas are worth anything, the way they 
present them is wearying. “He is a very attractive look¬ 
ing gentleman , 9 9 said a young lady, describing one whom 
she had been glad to meet; “but the moment he began 
to talk I was tired of him. His voice is nothing, just 
nothing.” The supposition that an oral voice is a dead 
one is well founded, and it is generally true, but not 
always so. There has been life discovered in tones of the 
oral quality, but it is languid. In a few rare cases physi¬ 
cal weakness has been the real cause of this unresonant 
voice. At all events, it should be turned into one of mag¬ 
netic warmth, and this is the quickest and surest of all 
methods. The dead voice is overcome in no other way, 
no matter how hard one may try to force it out by cul¬ 
ture of the mechanical sort. 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 305 

i “ i 

Monotony of sound or action tends to hypnotize rather 
than magnetize. 

This is the Sixty-third Principle. What is called range 
of pitch is variation up or down the musical scale. There 
are three registers in the voice, speaking in a general 
way, the highest being known as the head register, the 
middle as the throat register, and the lowest as the chest 
register. These divisions are made for convenience only. 
In each of these great divisions of the musical scale there 
are from eight to about eleven half notes, or actual sing¬ 
ing tones. In other words, there are from twenty-four to 
thirty-three different degrees of pitch; in certain very 
remarkable voices there are more, in most persons less. 

In spite of this possibility of change or variation, the 
ordinary individual uses but one or two of them. In con¬ 
versation you will hear almost no modulation at all. 
The man with a harsh voice does not know it perhaps, yet 
he keeps it going, and in a monotony of sound at that. 
It is wonderfully distressing. By some good luck he 
learns that his unpleasant voice is repelling his friends, 
and he proceeds to cultivate it so as to sweeten it a little. 
This is not sufficient. He needs variation in the use of 
it, for everything monotonous tends to irritate the mind 
and nerves. He may never know why his more beauti¬ 
ful tone is not a full relief to his friends and acquain¬ 
tances. 

What is the value of one pretty note? Will you go to 
hear the most celebrated singer warble on one tone, say 
onC! It is a very excellent tone, and has all the exquis¬ 
ite charm of culture, and we will say some of the warmth 
of magnetism; but it is merely C. You purchase a piano, 
and it pleases you immensely. Your daughter likes some 


306 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


one note better than all others, say D, and she plays that 
a full hour. Do you like it, simply because it is perfect? 
Yet you are compelled to listen to one note only in some 
lovely individual, and it is in your presence all day long. 
It is monotonous; and monotony kills. It saps the life 
of one fibre of the brain, and one prick of a needle may 
produce insanity. All about you are one-note speakers, 
or one-note talkers, and they are failures. The human 
voice has the greatest opportunities of all the faculties, 
and is the most used, but the worst used. 

All monotony is distressing. By it one may perhaps 
hypnotize. We have learned of this process being suc¬ 
cessful through the scheme of addressing the subject in 
one pitch of the voice, taking pains not to indulge in any 
modulation. To eat the same food is bad for the blood, 
as it seems to cloy the stomach and weaken the eagerness 
of hunger by deadening the action of digestion. To see 
the same things in the same way in your room is likewise 
wearying. The same foods, the same regime, the same 
habits, the same amusements, the same thoughts and 
monotony of life in general or in detail, is more or less 
exhausting. It does not do to take all the vitality out 
of one nerve or one class of nerves. In the same way a 
voice of one note does injury to a speaker, producing 
on his mind, by reflex action, an exhaustion that is dan¬ 
gerous to his own vigor of thought. It is always seen 
that a man or woman with a monotonous voice is corre¬ 
spondingly dull in brain and heart, when using the voice. 
Some excellent writers cannot express valuable thoughts 
off-hand. Some of the best novelists are tiresome in con¬ 
versation in speech. The attempt to make them lec¬ 
turers has failed. Lacking magnetism, they have not 
acquired warm, rich voices; and to secure the value of 
their minds they have been compelled to write out their 
lectures, the delivery of which has destroyed the merits 
otherwise possessed. 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 307 



Methods of speech should afford pleasure to others. 

This is the Sixty-fourth Principle. By the word 
“methods” is meant not merely the quality and general 
characteristics of voice, but the many little arts that aid 
to give its tone pleasure. These are so numerous that it 
would be impracticable to consider them apart. We have 
already referred to the unpleasant qualities of the voice, 
also to its deadness in certain individuals, and to its 
monotonous use; but there are other things, called 
methods, that annoy. You would hardly think that there 
would be much else under this line; but we shall see. 

Under the term methods we may include as much or 
as little as we please, and in whatever department we 
may choose to enter. Thus the use of force is a mistake, 
if it is employed under the idea that it has unusual 
value. Not many years ago, the proprietor of a large 
summer hotel lost nearly a hundred of his regular patrons 
before he discovered the cause. It seems that the hotel 
was surrounded on three sides by a very broad piazza, 
the front portion of which attracted the guests in the 
forenoon hours. These patrons generally remained in 
the month of August, and some for two months, and most 
of them had come year after year. In the season to which 
we have referred they began to leave in a few days, and 
refused to assign a reason. At length it was discovered 
that a man, who talked in a loud voice had made it 
impossible for the guests to enjoy themselves. 

It was his custom to take a prominent place on the 
main piazza and talk on all subjects with equal facility, 
and thereby make his voice a constant source of annoy¬ 
ance. Force is physical, animal, mechanical. Magnetic 
voices are always powerful in their use of blows or peals 


308 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


of sound; but these are not to be employed more frequent¬ 
ly than the thunder itself in a storm. You never hear it 
thunder all the time. The least bit of interest or excite¬ 
ment tends to send the voice up the pitch, and our admira¬ 
tion for it is lost at once, no matter how beautiful the 
person. The voice naturally has three normal pitches, 
the normal high, the normal middle, and the normal low. 
A low pitch is not a soft voice, but simply low in the 
musical scale, and should be developed into strength. 

The following natural principles will serve to guide 
you in the daily use of the voice: 

1. A very high pitch with force is used by scolds, vixen 
and irritable people. 

2. A high pitch, a note or two below the normal high, 
spoken with softness and slowly, is the most affectionate 
and tender of all tones. 

3. A middle pitch is an indication of calmness of mind 
and heart. 

4. A pitch a little below the middle adds earnestness 
and seriousness to a tender and loving voice. 

5. A low pitch spoken with force depicts strength of 
character, firmness of mind and heart, and a ruling spirit. 

6. A low pitch spoken softly betrays solemnity. 

7. Whispered tones, either composed of pure whisper or 
aspirated tones, indicate a suspicious, stealthy or decep¬ 
tive nature. There should be no aspiration in any of the 
pitches. 

Some of these little rules you already understand, but 
they have a special significance under this head, and 
should be kept constantly in mind until a new tempera¬ 
ment has been acquired. An empty voice is the first great 
barrier in life; and, as it makes those around you ner¬ 
vous and irritable, the counter-purpose will become des¬ 
perate and destroy your growth of influence. Somebody 
will be working to get you out of their circle of acquain¬ 
tance. The remark of a man that he never traded at a 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 309 


certain store because be disliked to bear tbe proprietor 
talk, bas a general significance. To frame pleasant say¬ 
ings in tbe mind is not sufficient, for they may not sound 
pleasant when uttered. We can deceive our friends by 
writing, for then tbe voice is not beard; but spoken words 
are colored by tbe feeling that prompts them. A cross 
remark, when not intended, bas often escaped tbe lips 
and made enemies. We do not know bow tbe words are 
going to sound until we open our moutbs. A vixen is 
known by tbe voice. Irritability is so plainly marked 
in tbe manner of speaking that only strong self-control 
can eradicate it. It is not wbat we say, but bow it is said, 
that influences others. “No” can be said to mean “Yes.” 
“I am, glad to see you,” may be intoned so as to mean 
6 ‘ I am sorry you are bere . 9 9 

Study the effect of your speech over others. Remem¬ 
ber that you cannot afford to drive away friends or to 
make enemies wantonly. You cannot shut your eyes to 
tbe fact that you are in competition with all mankind, 
and that others stand ready to push you one side when 
you are no longer able to bold your own. Personal attain¬ 
ments are powers that defeat, each in itself, some counter 
influence that seeks to put you down. This study involves 
a knowledge of tbe general rules of human nature; and 
an application of personal magnetism in dealing with 
such persons as mere acquaintances, ordinary friends, 
tradesmen, employes, agents, and all persons whom we 
meet in ordinary transactions. If we were alone in our 
desire of power, all persons would fall within tbe sway 
of our will. Purpose, however, is so strong in life, and in 
all animal life especially, that we are crossed at every turn 
by counter purposes. Their counter purposes are as nu¬ 
merous as the sands on tbe sea, as varied as tbe thoughts 
of man, and exist in every conceivable degree of strength. 
They are tbe cause of all crime and wickedness. When 
tbe desire is stronger than tbe power of execution, tbe 


310 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


natural consequence is agitation and broken lines of in¬ 
fluence. As we will see later on, this leads to destruc¬ 
tion of things, persons, self and soul. The counter in¬ 
fluences to be met are worthy of your study. We do not 
now refer to those which come from special sources, 
but ask you to examine the great world at large, study 
its vagaries, customs, expectations and criticisms. De¬ 
pend upon your will-power to meet them and hold them 
in mastery. This indomitable will-power is the genius 
of greatness, or the despair of the wretched. Either is 
for the time so much the superior of all counter pur¬ 
poses that the latter are completely controlled; in the 
one case they are swept into straight lines of greatness, 
or demolished by the energy of crime. You can meet 
and overpower the evil forces at work by your own 
strength; but they are best kept at a distance by a mag¬ 
netic temperament; and this is built of the best things in 
life, teaching smoothness and avoiding whatever is rough 
and annoying. 



Nothing automatic is magnetic. 

This is the Sixty-fifth Principle. What are called 
automatics are the little movements that throw them¬ 
selves off, so to speak; they are self-acting. All the world 
is full of them, and they originate in every conceivable 
way. They take the attention of others from your mind 
or purpose, and scatter your own influence. Did you 
ever watch your friend? What are his mannerisms, his 
individualities, his automatics? Individualities are char¬ 
acter peculiarities. Mannerisms are physical peculiari¬ 
ties. Automatics are small and disagreeable movements 
that attract attention and detract from the usefulness 
and character of their possessor. 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 311 


With the exception of those who have perfect self- 
control all persons possess automatics. Indeed, it is 
claimed that no person is free from them at one time or 
another. One person winks continually. Another squints 
the face into a constant contortion; this gentleman chews 
his mustache, this lady bites her finger-nails, that girl 
nibbles at the ends of her fingers, this young man drums, 
or keeps his lips in motion, and so on through a long list 
of automatic motions. But sounds are very disagreeable 
when automatic. We can look away from the sight of 
the motions, but cannot close our ears to the person who 
drums, or taps the foot, or snaps the finger, or whistles, 
or hems at every pause, or says “uh” a thousand times 
an hour when struggling for the right word, or keeps 
some sound going to annoy those within hearing. 

The persons who most indulge in these faults are some¬ 
times those who most need the power which they are 
wantonly throwing away. These tiresome and irritating 
physical habits ruin a person’s usefulness, and directly 
affect his success in the world. It is a pleasure to get 
away from the person possessing them. Many clergymen 
fail because of this difficulty. No friend is bold enough 
to criticize so small a point. It touches the sensitive¬ 
ness too finely. Only this year we were called upon to 
criticize the leading clergyman in a town where he could 
have reaped a harvest of souls double that obtained. He 
felt that he was a failure, and asked for a frank opinion. 
We had seen him in the pulpit, and stated the cause of 
his indifferent success. “In the first place, you bob your 
head forward on every emphatic word, sometimes cran¬ 
ing your neck, and sometimes pounding the atmosphere 
with your forehead. This of itself is tiresome. No one 
can endure to watch you long; for, even if the particular 
fault cannot be analyzed, the public feel the lack of your 
self-containment and control. You make many gestures, 
probably too many; but those you do make are meaning- 


312 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


less and therefore irritating to the beholders. Yonr 
action is merely automatic; with the possibility of thou¬ 
sands of varied movements of the body, you make but one 
or two, and repeat them for three-quarters of an hour. ’’ 
He wrote down these ideas, told them to his wife, and 
practiced at home to overcome them, if he could. 

The claim that a person should not be conscious of self 
is not true in every sense. There is a consciousness re¬ 
quired that is of the kind that a good grammarian uses; 
a knowledge of when a thing is wrong. 4 4 Did you notice 
the spelling of any words in the book you finished to¬ 
day V’ was asked of a very accurate orthographer. He 
said he noticed nothing. This is consciousness. Had 
there been any bad spelling he would have noticed it. A 
good grammarian never notices correct usage, but is 
quickly cognizant of errors. In the same way a person 
should be conscious of self, and avoid automatics when 
they occur; not paying attention to what is free from 
such faults. This is effected by temperament. 

1 ; 66 

Genuine frankness is magnetic. 

This is the Sixty-sixth Principle. By this law the 
mind and heart speak so much as they need, and speak it 
openly. Subterfuge and concealment are never necessary. 
Nor is it proper to open the mind on all occasions or 
to every person. It is commendable to keep your most 
private thoughts to yourself; your plans, your ambition, 
your secret communings, if they seem to demand it; but 
of this you alone are the arbitrator and must decide. 
Ingeniousness is an art with some, a pretence with others. 

There is an air of genial magnetism about one who is 
free from deception, Frankness does not mean to tell 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 313 


everything you know. On the other hand a careful per¬ 
son will keep many things to himself. Where it is unnec¬ 
essary to tell, it is quite unnecessary to lie. Do not em¬ 
ploy circumlocution to evade. Be frank enough to say 
you wish to refrain from telling. A magnetic person can 
refuse the request of another so completely and yet so 
delightfully that a pleasant sensation is left where a sting 
might have ensued. Do not have any uncertainty in your 
answer. Be brave in small things. Honesty of purpose 
is the best corner-stone of all magnetic lives; yet there are 
some persons, notably lawyers, who so work themselves 
up into the belief of the honesty of their own dishonest 
views that for the time being they experience genuine 
feelings of truthfulness. Rufus Choate was one of these 
men. He did not have faith in his clients; but he used 
the process of mental vision to summon before his mind 
his imaginary honest clients, for whom he pleaded with 
all the zeal and warmth of his generous and noble heart. 
The circumstances that looked suspicious in their connec¬ 
tion with his real clients he made consistent with the lives 
of his imaginary ones, and showed to the jury how an 
honest man might commit deeds that, while appearing 
suspicious, were in fact innocently done. So mental vi¬ 
sion is an aid to dishonesty, and it is to be regretted. 

What a grand mail of manliness and womanliness is 
earnest frankness. In the privacy of your own family 
you may make an ape of yourself, if you wish, and it 
is generally a relief to an overwrought brain to do so. 
But out in the great, broad world, where the battle of 
life has to be fought, you should be in earnest. It is easy 
to joke, and you leave the impression of being a jolly 
good fellow; but your influence in life is much marred. 
A jovial disposition is always appreciated when proper 
if accompanied with dignity and reserve. Humorous 
illustrations are made more humorous if the speaker con¬ 
trasts himself with the subject-matter of the joke. 


314 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


One’s life conduct should be about right. Courage 
is so important a factor in this great art that its absence 
at once detracts from one’s personal power. A man who 
lacks courage is a coward; not always in the sense of con¬ 
science, and moral cowardice is its lowest form; but in 
the sense of embarrassment. Ignorance, in some persons, 
is the cause of this trouble; in others it kills embarrass¬ 
ment. Generally speaking, however, a lack of knowl¬ 
edge, a discovered mistake, or forgetfulness will give 
rise to embarrassment. If we know that we are pronoun¬ 
cing our words well, an affirmative courage is present. 
To be sure of being correct is always exhilarating and 
aids the development of magnetism. 

If we know that our voices are good, and are easily 
controlled, the same result follows. If we know that we 
are awkward, we become embarrassed. To be awkward, 
and not to know it, mars our usefulness, for then our 
friends and audiences lose confidence in us. A graceful 
person, free from affectation, inspires the friendship and 
confidence of others. That saves embarrassment. 

IF YOU ARE CAUGHT IN A MISTAKE, ADMIT IT. 

This precept is nearly always a good one. No honest 
man need ever fear the result of admitting an error. If 
the error is unnoticed, do not call attention to it, if there 
is no possibility of harm arising from its concealment. 
If it is noticed, and you attempt to dodge it, the result 
will be disastrous. A ready, straightforward acknowl¬ 
edgment of the error has a breezy air of frankness about 
it that always charms and captivates. Dishonest people 
generally seek to circumlocute and explain away their 
errors. 

Some persons run away from empty fears; some seek 
to dodge the irresistible; and all put off till the last 
moment the disagreeable duties of life. Such avoidance 
is unmagnetic. 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 315 


DO THINGS THAT YOU DISLIKE TO DO. 

Of course, this applies to things that are proper to do. 
It is human nature to shirk, to dodge, to evade, to put 
off. It is never magnetic, however. Such habits are 
easily formed. It is unnecessary to state that laziness is 
an enemy of this art, as it is of every art and every good 
thing in life; hut there will he little laziness present in 
any pupil who masters the tension exercises. They will 
drive it away, and probably forever. 

On arising in the morning you will think of some duty 
that should he performed. It may not exactly he dis¬ 
agreeable, hut it is unattractive, and you feel that it can 
be put off for a day or two. Go about it at once! You 
wish to speak to your neighbor upon a matter that needs 
rectifying, but which he may be ignorant of. It may be 
slightly unpleasant. Do it at once. It is good training. 
You owe a man a bill. You meet him on the street. 
Speak to him about it frankly and honestly. If you can 
never pay him, say so. If in a year you may be able to 
cancel the debt, say so. Whatever the facts are, tell 
them. Do not hang your head, and merely nod as you 
go by. If you know he is in the habit of passing a cer¬ 
tain street, do not dodge him or change your accustomed 
path, even though it is just as convenient. Such habits 
make a currish spirit and stamp the face badly. If your 
creditor asks you for the debt, do not be annoyed, even 
if he is angry. Dignity and manliness will make you su¬ 
preme master of the situation. 

All persons may be unfortunate enough to be insolvent 
debtors at times. It is a bad freak of human nature to 
spend ,your cash at most any other place than that of 
your creditor, simply because you are afraid to meet 
him. Persons who can no longer get credit will 
spend their cash at the store of one whom they do not 
owe. This is unmagnetic, because it is unmanly. Go to 
your creditor, and tell him that you cannot pay him the 


316 UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 

old debt, but that, as long as be will sell you at as low 
prices as others, you will give bim tbe preference of 
your cash patronage. It builds up a manly and magnetic 
spirit to seek out and to perform things that you dis¬ 
like to do. 

If a person owes you do not be afraid to ask for it. 
Do not whine and beg, but come directly to the point; 
show him the exact position he occupies in the matter. 
Your magnetic directness may secure the claim, where 
threatening or peevishness would do no good. The mere 
presence and look of a creditor has made many a debtor 
feel glad to pay the debt. 

If you owe a person an apology, make it; but always 
in a frank, honest and dignified manner; no matter 
whether you have offended the greatest or the meanest 
of earth, intentionally or unintentionally. It is not yield¬ 
ing to apologise where an apology is due. Never be pro¬ 
fuse. A simple, earnest remark, coming from the heart, 
is always sufficient. Do this even if it is hard to do; 
that makes it better practice. 

If you have a favor to ask of another, do not put it 
off. The more you dislike to do it, the sooner you should 
attempt it, for you should be thankful that such an oppor¬ 
tunity presents itself for practicing this precept. And 
so we might go on citing the ways in which you can per¬ 
form things that are not inviting. Many such opportuni¬ 
ties present themselves constantly. Hail them as good 
omens, and never disregard this precept. It will make 
you manly, and that quality is essential to magnetism of 
the person. 

“Yet while he stood and Tcnew not what to do, 

With yearning, a strange thrill of hope there came , 

A shaft of new desire now pierced him through, 

And therewithal a soft voice called his name; 

And when he turned, with eager eyes aflame. 

He saw betwixt him and the setting sun 
The lively image of his loved one.’’ 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 317 


f 

£ 67 | 

*l**t^***^***^*****t******^******X*K*****t************* 

Politeness is magnetic. 

This is the Sixty-seventh Principle. To be polite is to 
be both skilled in the science of etiquette and polished 
in the art of good breeding. So important are these two 
great accomplishments that a special book, known as Ral¬ 
ston Culture, has devoted a large space to them. The laws 
of etiquette are founded upon natural rules in most in¬ 
stances, and no person is excusable who is ignorant of 
them. The fads and whims of artificial form are not 
worth learning. So that a person is correct, as far as 
good judgment and sense hold sway; he is cultured. 

Politeness that is not natural, is generally insipid, flat 
and colorless. By natural politeness is meant that man¬ 
ner of tongue and action which is a part of ourselves at all 
times. Naturalness is merely habit. One habit can easily 
be changed for another. After the first struggle is over 
the new habit displaces the old. The tendency of man¬ 
kind is to drift into barbarism. The cultivating hand 
of art checks this tendency and seeks at every opportu¬ 
nity to improve man. 

Politeness should be studied as an art and practiced 
as such. It is sometimes practiced only before company, 
but the shallowness is soon discovered. A person nat¬ 
urally polite will be so before a beggar and before a king; 
before his own sister as well as in the presence of some 
other fellow’s sister; before his mother, father, child, 
servant, dog; and he who is coarse at home, or boorish 
in his private life, can assume only the thinnest gauze of 
politeness when occasion demands it; and because it is 
mere assumption, he will become embarrassed, will blun¬ 
der, halt, hem, and show either stupid reticence or a 
brassy boorishness under the guise of pretended felici- 


318 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


tons conversation. The latter has the supreme satisfac¬ 
tion of feeling happy while making others miserable. 

Success is worth attaining, whether it is forced by the 
command of a haughty will or invited by the dulcet tones 
of kindness. Polish is the fairest of accomplishments, 
for it attracts as the light draws a moth. Many a plain 
woman has won her way to the good opinion of others 
by nothing better than an elegance of manner and polite¬ 
ness. Society is a power in every locality. It is in¬ 
tended to draw the line between the coarse animal in¬ 
stincts of humanity and the higher hopes of refinement, 
and is undoubtedly the birthright of gentleness. How 
quickly a gentleman of reasonable ability might rise in 
life, if he were to give unmistakable evidence of the pos¬ 
session of this quality. 




68 


t 




Sympathy is magnetic. 

This is the Sixty-eighth Principle. It deals with a 
quality of the heart, as politeness is a quality of the mind 
and muscles. In the present existence men and women 
are always in need of sympathy and are always looking 
for it. No one is so strong that it is not accepted 
as a solace for the sufferings and disappointments 
of life. To be alone on the face of the globe would 
make man a brute, a soul of iron without a single pulsa¬ 
tion of kindly interest in anything except the operations 
of crude nature. Humanity is based upon sympathy by 
which hearts are interwoven into the fabric of society. 

This quality is an angel with wings outspread toward 
opposite poles. We cannot bear to witness the agony of 
others, even when they might have averted the condition 
their own wantonness has brought upon them; but it is 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 319 


as harmful to them as to us to encourage or even permit 
such wantonness to have free scope. This age is saturated 
with fraud and deceit, the practice of which destroys 
the magnetism of the possessor and may outflank the 
strength of the honest man. You cannot afford to use 
crooked methods; for magnetism is the doctrine of 
straightness. Nor can you afford to be ambushed by the 
trickery of others. The proudest army the world ever 
saw, the chosen array of men tried in battle and proven 
in bravery, could not withstand the treachery of the dia¬ 
bolical methods employed by savages. Strength must 
fight in the open. 

This law is true in magnetism, and is one of its most 
important principles. Sympathy is needed for those who 
are attacked in ambush, and for yourself as well if you 
are unable to cope with this disadvantage; but it must 
be withheld from the classes that prey upon your honesty 
under the pretence of doing you a service. You may be 
as magnetic as you please; if you step into a trap that 
will catch you in its sharp clutches, you are defenceless. 
The sword that cut the tendon at the heel of Achilles 
laid him low. There is trickery at every hand, waiting to 
entrap you; and the age is now in the vortex of a whirl¬ 
pool of deceit. 

There is plenty of dishonesty in the world, but far more 
honesty. Because the former is so abundant it is no 
reason why you should distrust mankind generally. A 
confidence in those about you affords you more comfort, 
and draws the love of others to you. It is well to be on 
your guard, so as to save yourself from loss. You can 
rebuke dishonesty by a full, powerful glance of the eye. 

We should take a kindly interest in everybody, where 
we have occasion to meet and talk with them. Make our 
tones pleasant and sincerely earnest. Pitch the voice at 
or below the middle register. Soften it if the occasion 
demands. Do not be sympathetic to bestow a favor, or 


320 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


to be patronizing. Do not be verbose. Do not “slop 
over. ” Say nothing of a sympathetic nature unless the 
heart prompts it, and there is thought behind the words; 
but make the heart prompt it. Educate it to kindness. 
Study faces; look into the eyes of those you meet, and 
read their lives. Mental vision will aid you to carry 
your study of men and women into their homes; and it 
rarely ever fails to tell true stories of their joys or 
sorrows, hopes or disappointments. 

In your sympathy learn to discriminate between the 
classes that cause so much suffering to their fellow be¬ 
ings and those who are fighting the battle of honesty, and 
you will find both sides in array. Dishonesty is more 
active; one foxy man will, in a day, cover more ground 
than ten honest men, taking all the averages into con¬ 
sideration. This should not be true. It is the duty of 
those who possess a superior power to drive out of am¬ 
bush the lurking outlaws; for fear is a detriment to 
courage, and the bravest cannot help fearing a tricky 
adversary. You can understand this principle better by 
putting yourself in the place of one who is willing to 
fight a foe openly, as man to man, but who would be fool¬ 
hardy to submit himself to the sure dangers of subter¬ 
fuge. 

The preceding table of dishonesty was prepared some 
years ago, and has been before the public for a decade 
without adverse criticism. Those who are in a position 
to know agree fully with the percentages given, and some 
have offered suggestions tending to strengthen the posi¬ 
tions given. Corporations are bodies in the aggregate 
designed to avoid responsibility, and to shield the official 
as well as the member behind the mass. This aggregation 
is controlled by one spirit only—policy. It is a spirit 
without a soul. The common law of England and Amer¬ 
ica has for centuries maintained that corporations have 
no souls. All humanity is absent in their conduct, and 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 321 


without humanity there is no chance for the development 
of magnetism. 

Politicians are dishonest to the core, in and out, from 
their hides to their centers. The so-called profession of 
politics is the lowest in the whole category of methods 
by which man seeks to get a living by his wits. It is 
the diametrical opposite of statesmanship. The latter 
refuses to be bound by party, but first demands the prin¬ 
ciple. All party ties are fetters of freedom; and there is 
no honest man who is willing to give up his freedom to 
a party, unless he is a stupid dupe. To think and to act 
in a certain rut is not liberty. The party man is a 
caged bird of songless voice. The statesman is an eagle, 
whose broad, expanding wings lift him out of the hollow 
dungeons into a plane far above, from which he is able 
to view a wide horizon. 

Manufacturers are nearly all dishonest, especially in 
America. The race here is for money only. If a reliable 
brand of goods is established, it is only because there is 
value in the name of honesty; and this mere name must 
be paraded for the purposes of advertising. American 
manufacturers are the most unreliable in the world, and 
this is not necessarily a reflection upon the people, for 
most of the manufacturers are the off-scourings of the 
Old World. Many attempts have been made to expose 
them, but they combine with politicians, and have in¬ 
fluence in legislation to such an extent that it is almost 
hopeless to dethrone them. When we state the lament¬ 
able fact that the white flour sold at this day is badly 
adulterated with injurious matter, such as white clay, 
earth, ground lime, terra alba, fertilizing material, as 
well as corn, corn husks, alum and other poisons, it tells 
the whole story; for when manufacturers are so dishonest 
as to imperil the lives of humanity by the invasion of the 
staff of life with their money-making diabolism, we can 
hope for nothing better in other directions. 


322 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


The study of magnetism has everything to do with the 
question of honesty in food manufactures. The surest 
way of securing magnetism is by the natural funds in the 
vital system of the body, and these are directly supplied 
by the nutrition of the blood. Pure foods, if of a whole¬ 
some character, will of themselves generate more than 
nine-tenths of all the magnetism the body needs. It is 
the purpose of nature that they should do this. Pure 
foods tend toward the healing of all diseases; they drive 
away pain by substituting wholesome flesh in place of 
that which is imperfect. They supply power because 
their nutrition is turned into vitality. On the opposite 
hand, the use of dangerous foods will soon drive away all 
magnetism. 

A very ready test was made of this fact in the case of a 
man who was acknowledged to be of the highest order of 
power in this line, but who, on attempting to address a 
meeting where much was expected of him, could not do 
more than deal in words. He was suffering from intes¬ 
tinal pains caused by the use of adulterated foods. An 
actor, who had held for years a power over his audiences, 
found his magnetism all gone, and he spent his weeks and 
months fighting to hold his own in the dramatic profes¬ 
sion, while it was impossible to get vitality from the food 
he ate. At length he suspected that he was falling prey 
to the numberless food adulterations; he saw in the 
papers the statement that no food was pure, or at least 
that all kinds were adulterated, and he fell back upon 
the plainest of the wholesome foods, using those that he 
knew could not be tampered with; and lo! to his grati¬ 
fying surprise his magnetism came back in full force. 
He said: “I now use a better class of foods, if simpler, 
than ever I used before, and I am correspondingly bene¬ 
fited.^ Herein is a secret worth learning, if you would 
get the best value from what you eat. And the best is 
much the cheapest. 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 323 


We will not take the space to discuss all the list in the 
table of dishonesty. The chief importance is in the fact 
that we must avoid being waylaid by the trickery of 
these classes. A retail dealer says: “I am not one of 
those who pretend to be honest. I simply try to be when 
I can; and when I cannot, I do not try. I defy any man 
in my business line to be honest all the time. The trouble 
is principally with the wholesalers; they are up to new 
tricks all the time. Here is G., a retailer; he was con¬ 
victed of selling chemically made vinegar that was rank 
poisonous. I had some of the same kind, and I would 
have sworn it was pure vinegar; but it was not. You 
see, I did not know. I cannot find out how to tell all 
these adulterations. I had bought the best grade of 
spices, cream tartar, peppers, and other goods; but they 
all turned out to be fraudulent. I paid the highest prices. 
What am I to do V 9 And he then went on to say that he 
could not look a man in the face to whom he had sold 
some of such poisons. It made a sort of sneak of him. 
The men who sold him the goods he never dealt with 
again, and he took the trouble to notify other retail 
dealers of the fact, which he persisted in until he had 
ruined the wholesalers. This was right. If other honest 
men would do as much, the enemies of humanity would 
be driven from ambush. 

A judge of court once gave evidence of a keen knowl¬ 
edge of human nature. A business man purchased some 
guaranteed all-wool suitings, some guaranteed all-linen 
handkerchiefs, and other things from a peddler who had 
a regular route. The goods proved to be very inferior 
grades of cotton. The peddler was arrested and dis¬ 
charged. The judge said: “In this age of misrepresenta¬ 
tion the courts cannot stop to correct the falsehoods told 
in business. The complaining witness certainly knew, 
or ought to have known, that peddlers are no more 
honest than other merchants. ” In another case the judge 


324 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


ruled to the jury somewhat as follows: “The decisions 
of courts in the various States, particularly in what are 
termed leading cases, as far as they affect this cause, 
establish the right of a man selling goods to praise them 
to excess, even to overstep the bounds of truth. If he 
guarantees them in such language as would amount to 
a warranty of their nature, grade, etc., he may be liable 
in a civil action for a breach of such guarantee; but false 
statements are not of that character. There seems to be 
no penalty for them, unless it is a clear case of obtaining 
money or other value by false pretences. A falsehood 
that overpraises the goods would not be construed as a 
ground for either a criminal or civil action.’’ In other 
words, the courts hold that deceit is to be expected in 
trade, and that a purchaser should not find fault if he 
is victimized. This is an unpleasant assertion, but is 
born out in actual experience. 

A man who had been in business thirty years and in 
politics for ten or more, said: “In the ten years of my 
political career, which is now as successful as at any 
previous time, I have never met an honest man in that 
profession, although a certain few have the reputation 
of being unsullied. When a Representative or Senator 
does not dare to accept a bribe from a corporation, he 
accepts a retainer to act as attorney, whether he is an 
attorney or not. Among my business acquaintances the 
only honest man I have ever met—that is, the only man 
who was probably honest all the time—was a retail 
grocer, who would not sell pure goods on the guarantee 
or reputation of a firm of makers or wholesalers, but 
who got at the knowledge of their contents in one way or 
another and gave the facts to his patrons. He was be¬ 
lieved in by all his customers, and built up an immense 
trade. He and a few of his wealthy patrons combined 
in a little society, and hired chemists to analyze the 
goods. This became known . 9 ’ We have received a large 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 325 


number of similar letters from the earliest students of 
our book on. Advanced Magnetism. 

If you are thinking of buying land or of otherwise en¬ 
gaging the services of a real estate agent, it is well to 
remember the remarks made by the judge of court. 
While most of them are dishonest at some time or other, 
about two in a hundred are honest at all times; but these 
two have not settled in your locality, it is quite probable. 
It is very humiliating and disheartening to be cheated 
in matters that relate to a home; so we advise you to in¬ 
quire of all your friends and acquaintances who can give 
you light upon the facts that pertain to such transactions. 
Lawyers are not all honest at all times; some are honest 
part of the time, and some are never honest, as the effort 
would fracture their cheek. There is a class of counsel¬ 
lors who pride themselves on their knowledge, their 
chastity and their integrity; men who never take a small 
case, and who charge extortionate fees in large ones. 
They would not misrepresent a fact to court or jury, but 
they are thoroughly dishonest while satisfying them¬ 
selves of their honesty; for it is fraudulent to accept a 
retainer that is worth more than all their services should 
be valued in the whole case; keep their clients in the 
dark as to the probable future charges, and finally extort 
an extra fee of enormous proportions. This is the prac¬ 
tice of many white-featured lawyers. Perhaps their con¬ 
ceit makes them believe that they are honest. Extortion 
is always a crime, and any charge that exceeds the actual 
value of the services rendered is extortion. We believe 
you will agree with our logic here. 

The greatest evidence of hypnotic contagion is the 
blind belief that the ignorant classes have in the state¬ 
ments made in the newspapers. In one of the largest Am¬ 
erican cities the “yellow ” journals have a large follow¬ 
ing, the rankest of which are three in number in the 
morning and three in the evening; although most papers 


326 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


that use large type headlines, called scare-heads, are 
“yellow,’’ sensational and debasing, as investigation will 
show. The enterprise (?) of such papers is emulated by 
all other dishonest editors; their syndicate Sunday false¬ 
hoods are copied far and wide; their concocted scien¬ 
tific (?) articles are eagerly caught up by the smaller 
press, who know better than to believe in them; and so 
much of the profession of journalism is saturated with 
the lowest stripe of dishonesty. How eagerly a fake in¬ 
terview with a prominent man, created out of nothing 
but the criminal brain of an editor or far-away aethereal 
correspondent (?), is caught up by all the papers of the 
country without exception, and paraded into the homes 
of those who are too busy to analyze the frauds of the 
press. Several years ago, the New York Liar pretended 
that its European correspondent (a myth that existed in 
the brain of the editor of the N. Y. L.) had seen Admiral 
Dewey, and had succeeded in making him talk in a very 
indiscreet manner; the whole thing being, of course, repu¬ 
diated by him as an invention; yet every paper in Amer¬ 
ica published that interview, as though it were true. We 
asked an editor if he believed it at the time he read it, 
and he quickly answered, “No; we all knew it was a lie. 
That New York paper is an unparalleled liar. But we 
published it because it was news, and the people do not 
care whether it was true or not.” Another editor said: 
‘ 1 Journalism of to-day in America is a sort of dime novel 
affair. It is mostly fiction of the cheapest grade. ’ 7 And 
we have reports from many editors who would like to see 
it made an honest profession. That such lies do an in¬ 
calculable injury is well known, from the fact that so 
many editors, reporters and correspondents are killed 
every year by those they have maligned, and juries have 
refused to convict the slayers. Reputation is dearer 
than life, and if a man may kill his would-be murderer, 
it is good logic to assume that juries are justified in 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 327 


acquitting those who have removed pests worse than 
murderers. 



Beauty of thought is magnetic. 

This is the Sixty-ninth Principle. Before this volume 
closes we shall show that true magnetism, that which 
wins and which ennobles the character that wins, is 
associated with a realm of which man knows but little. 
Assuming that there are opposite poles of existence some¬ 
where, but not fully recognized as yet, and assuming 
that, for the sake of convenience, it would be proper 
to call one of them hell and the other heaven, we feel 
justified in asserting that negative magnetism tends 
toward the former condition and positive toward the 
latter; that hypnotism is at the lowest extremity of the 
basest form of sub-consciousness, while magnetism is at 
the highest. 

The more you examine these propositions the more you 
will be convinced of their truth. 

Life has two main highways —one that ascends, the 
other that descends; one that invites everything that en¬ 
hances the value of existence, the other that invites all 
the meanness of the universe into its pathway. A flower 
is an object of praise, a weed inspires contempt. A song 
awakens the memory of other days, and its swelling notes 
are fraught with the fragrant airs of youth and love; 
a discordant scratching on the window-pane is sound that 
distracts. Thoughts that are beautiful are born of heaven 
somewhere; whether it be on earth or in brighter skies, 
we know not. All power for ruling life is akin to the all 
prevailing scheme that is sending this planet on to a 
grander destiny. 

A fountain can rise no higher than its source, and a 


328 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


mind can give no more than it has. Beautiful thoughts 
are pearls of life, and can never die. Well spoken words 
reflect their meaning on the soul. A thought read by the 
eye or coldly uttered by the voice appeals to the brain 
only, and is rarely ever fully absorbed. A thought feel¬ 
ingly spoken, with the full heart of the speaker back 
of it, is soon absorbed. Thus the grandest and most 
sublime experience of the world’s past great men and 
women can be drawn into our natures. 

The greatest characters of one generation have ab¬ 
sorbed the thoughts of the greatest characters of the 
preceding generations. This accumulation has come 
down to us. A great character leaves behind him, in 
language, the very pith and essence of himself. The 
things a man says are himself. He at one time loved to 
quote the grandest thoughts of his predecessors, until, by 
absorption, they became a part of his character. Edward 
Everett declared this to be the surest and quickest means 
of building a strong character; and no great person has 
ever failed to follow the plan. Webster was full of Mil- 
ton, Shakespeare and the Bible. 

Flowers are the stars of the fields, the pearls of the 
garden, the jewels of home. They abound everywhere 
to please the eye with their beauty, and fill the air with 
their fragrance. They are to the substantial growth of 
vegetation what poetry is to prose. The sky is studded 
with them at night, when earth’s flowers have gone to 
rest. The love of flowers should be cultivated. To look 
into the construction of the tiniest bud that blooms, and 
contemplate its world of life, its intricacy of growth, will 
awaken the heart to a desire for the purest things of life. 

Music likewise touches the depths of the soul. The 
love for this can be increased by cultivation. It is not 
necessary to be able to sing or play. The author can do 
neither, but he can listen to both with intense enjoyment. 
The ballads of everyday life, and the profounder music 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 329 


of the thoughtful composers impress the mind and heart; 
but the common airs known as topical songs, and the 
“catchy’’ tunes that amuse merely, are to pure music 
what “slang” is to refinement. Character is not built 
up by cultivating a taste for “slangy” songs. Here the 
line should be drawn. The first experiences of childhood 
are stamped on a whole life. The earliest impulses of a 
day live and breathe into a strong and pure life all 
through the hours till night. We are affected in the day¬ 
time by the first mood of the morning. 

Some persons in society never say a bright thing; they 
are clay. Some cannot open their mouths without saying 
a positively dull thing; they are useless earth. Their 
social position is to wear colors and fill in the background. 
There are many talkers in society who have a vocabulary 
as small as a kitchen maid’s, yet who do most of the talk¬ 
ing. The repetition of words, and the redundancy of 
thought furnish as much brightness as a meal of dried 
apples twenty-one times a week. Such persons are 
empty minded; and flippancy or morbid moroseness can 
be the only offspring. True brightness can be acquired 
by all who desire it, and then the mind will scintillate 
with the modesty of a diamond. The surest way to 
achieve this much-to-be-desired result is to repeat aloud, 
to yourself only, the thoughts which you would say to 
others, and to correct them as you hear them. 

It is the habit of many to talk as though it was unim¬ 
portant whether the ideas, or even the language, were 
understood or not. Those who lack the power of 
voice and enunciation bury their thoughts in an unin¬ 
telligible mass of sound, thereby reacting on the creative 
talent of speech. All things born must have some 
means of communication with living beings. The orator 
is dead to himself even, if he cannot use his voice. The 
writer must know how to use pen and ink. The poets 
of ancient centuries sang their fancies, those of to-day 


o 


330 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


frame them in written speech; yet these jeweled galaxies 
of the mind could only have been felt were language 
unknown. To him who would create, unfold, develop, 
and give to the world the priceless gems of thought, the 
glittering and flower-spangled beauties of that rarer 
realm of life, there must precede in gifts the means and 
methods of expression; there must come the art of mak¬ 
ing sentences easily, the flow of language and the clear 
coinage of enunciation. As one writer says: “Good for¬ 
tune and good speech go hand in hand.” 

Persons who can say beautiful things in a beautiful 
manner, who are unable to make themselves heard or 
understood, shrink back on themselves and lose courage, 
as has been the experience with many a man and woman 
who would otherwise have proved themselves of untold 
value to mankind. It is not loudness of voice that enables 
one to be understood. If the vowels have no mouth action 
the utterances are not clearly made and not easily 
heard. It is not sufficient that the audience hear the 
sound of the voice—they should hear what is said. Lan¬ 
guage consists merely of syllables, syllables of vowels and 
consonants. One syllable differs from another merely in 
the fact that different vowels and consonants are 
employed, or combined differently. 

If a speaker or reader with more voice than brains 
should endeavor merely to make himself heard, he could 
do it by shouting or yelling unintelligible sounds, as the 
street venders do; the voice is heard, and distressingly 
so. But a quiet tone, accompanied by a clear enuncia¬ 
tion, will carry sense, in the form of intelligible words, 
farther than the shouter’s voice. A strong voice is of no 
avail if the vowels and consonants are not well formed 
and made. The vowels should be formed as far forward 
in the mouth as possible, and be accompanied by full lip 
action. One vowel differs from another only in a change 
of the shape of the mouth. The consonants should be 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 331 


made by the firmest possible contact of two parts of the 
month. 

Conversation is often made the channel of expression 
of beautiful thoughts. It is an avenue of opportunity that 
should be made much of, for it is not possible to develop 
the brain and its best realms unless the channels of com¬ 
munication are employed. A thought that has never 
winged its flight out of the mind is deadborn. No better 
means of testing your magnetism, your dignity, your 
power and self-control, can be found than in the oppor¬ 
tunities of good conversation. Do not, of course, become 
a mere display, nor an arrogant consumer of the time 
and attention of the assembly or whomsoever you are 
engaged with, but use the highest discretion. When 
others talk, listen. When others are ready to listen, talk. 
It is an advantage to the wise to be heard. Remaining 
silent soon relegates you to a lower stratum. Between 
these two dangers you must steer your way with care 
and intelligence. In listening, throw your whole inter¬ 
est upon the thoughts of the talker; if you are as mag¬ 
netic as you should be, you will be able to quietly silence 
an empty talker, and open the way to a more fruitful 
conversation. 

It is excellent to seek society, to make it if you cannot 
find it otherwise, to extend your acquaintance with re¬ 
fined and worthy persons, so that the flowers of life may 
be cultivated as well as the flowers of the garden. Good 
society is the best school for both sexes. Where it does 
not exist humanity is barbarous. The best society is 
that wherein we find the best refinement, the best thought 
and the purest hearts. Etiquette is a code of conduct 
founded on common sense, and intended to establish 
refined customs among people who interchange social 
courtesies. But what is good etiquette in society is good 
at home. 

Caste in social rank is the true law of life. If men and 


332 


UNIVERSAL MAGNETISM 


women openly refuse to cultivate those charms of mind 
and manner which are within easy reach of all, they 
should be relegated to their proper rank socially. It is 
true, and lamentably so, that what is called the best 
society is often a mixture of good and bad; but even here 
the good has its opportunities. A few people make the 
personnel of the whole, and the leaders are often magnetic 
rather than boorishly wealthy. No better ambition can 
be found in life than the desire to rule the drawing-room; 
and the history of the highest caste of all the cities and 
countries proves that brilliancy and merit, when mag¬ 
netic, may lead the salon, even if wealth and ancestry are 
lacking. 

The magnetism that charms must be developed on 
charmable lines. It is a mistake to think otherwise. A 
lady, who had opportunities but no desire to make her¬ 
self refined, once sought the aid of these lessons. i 1 I just 
want to charm people/’ she said. “But, madam, do you 
suppose that coarse features, foul breath, discolored 
teeth, a snappy voice and masculine tread will aid you to 
charm the persons whom you meet?” “Why not, if 
I acquire magnetism?” Well, why not? In the first 
place, the soul of pure magnetism, or the vital gift of 
pleasing and winning, has existed since the birth of the 
sky. All that pleases, and blesses while it pleases, is mag¬ 
netic. The kind ways, the cultured voice, the smile, the 
poise of color, the harmony of music, the sympathy of 
love, are natural emanations from the soul of magnetism 
that permeates existence. For you, then, to be socially 
magnetic, the first step is to decree by act of your will that 
these charms shall be yours. 

In the realm of attainment you acquire the tempera¬ 
ment that makes your work, your efforts, your life even, 
a naturally magnetic success. Sudden adoption of habits 
must result in mere artifice, a thing that is pricked like 
a bubble when it is brought in contact with the real 


ESTATE OF PERSONAL ATTAINMENT 333 


influence of strong men and women. You must be able 
to cope with the greatest. Do not depend upon the 
unreal. You need temperament; a fixed habit, a soul satu¬ 
rated with whatever is best, a character that is vital in 
its power; and these are the true magnetic temperament 
when they are charged. 




“The leaf tongues of the forest, 
The flowery lips of the sod, 

The happy birds that hymn their 
Rapture in the ear of God, 

The summer wind that bringeth 
Music over land and sea 
Have each a voice that singeth 
This sweet song of songs to me: 

*This world is full of beauty, 

Like other worlds above, 

And if we did our duty, 

It might be full of love/ ’* 
























